Angolans take on former masters
- 11 Jun 06, 01:36 PM
COLOGNE 鈥 There鈥檚 a lot at stake for the Angolans tonight.
Not only is it their debut World Cup match but by a fluke of the draw, their first ever finals game is against their former colonial master 鈥 Portugal.
The two countries share a troubled on and off the pitch.
In fact, when they last played in 2001 the game had to be abandoned 20 minutes from time after four Angolans were given red cards. At that point they were losing 5-1...
Of course, the Portuguese are favourites to win the tie but the Palancas Negras, or Black Impalas, are determined to put up a good fight. Their star, Pedro Mantorras, plays for Benfica so will have plenty to prove against team mates on the Portuguese side.
Meanwhile, the fans seem determined that relations between the 鈥渂rother鈥 nations will remain strong regardless of the result.
鈥淲e were colonised by Portugal in the past but now in the present we are together 鈥 united in peace and love,鈥 said Shunnoz Fiel, a fashion designer from Angola鈥檚 capital, Luanda.
He was one of a colourful group of Angolan artists, musicians and poets who have travelled to Germany to showcase talent from the southern African country 鈥 better known for its poverty and long civil war after independence 鈥 while the World Cup is on.
There was even a catwalk show of Angolan fashion at the Fan Fest in Heumarkt 鈥 probably not what the fans were expecting but it seemed to go down well.
What with a troupe of Portuguese folk dancers in central Cologne and a German brass band parading on Sunday morning, it seems everyone wants to put on a show.
So, will the Angolan underdogs pull off an upset like Senegal inflicted on France in the opening game in 2002? We'll have to wait and see...
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i hope they ( angola ) win becouse i'm angolan and proud to be.
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They havent let down yet, so I am sure they are going to put up a fight, 1-0 isnt that bad
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angola did not disgrace, i think they lack the experience at this level. good game though
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im amazed by angola only 1-0 down to portugal after conceding after 4 minutes and almost conceding after 11 seconds
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I thought Angola held there own tonight and what a giant among men Pedro Mantorras is. A man with a huge heart for the less fortunate people from his country a very very rare breed.....
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Portugal played well below its potential - Deco's absence was felt and Simao was not very inspired. Figo is still very strong. Angola put up a good fight and played very bravely - congratulations to them.
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The Portuguese team was held up in traffic for almost four hours yesterday, while the police did nothing to escort the bus out of the traffic jam. So much for German efficiency. Also incomprehensible was the fact there were no tickets for sale for the Portugal-Angola match and then thousands of seats were empty. Let's hope FIFA gets it right for the next match.
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dey were a bit nervous at the begining but towards the end of the first half you couldnt see the difference in class
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not the best of games...
very few games have thrilled so far...
hopefully the tempo picks up..
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ooooooooo der no good portugal kicked der ass cum on portugal beat eveyone and take the cup u deserve it
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angola did not disgrace
Neal Saferstein
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african futbol has become of age.watched ivory coast and angola play.i bet 2010 and the cup remains in africa
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some of the comments here remind me of pele and his predictions!!
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Angola showed wonderful resilience after giving up the early, easy goal. But it's Portugal that should be worried. They showed once again they have a brittle Iberian mentality when it comes to The Show. Expect their peninsular neighbors to also show first round sluggishness, followed by second round early exits.
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