Angolan national team head coach, Pedro Gonçalves, has set his sights on securing a win against the Black Stars of Ghana in their upcoming 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier.
Ghana and Angola are grouped together with Sudan and Niger for the qualifiers. The Black Stars will host Angola in the first leg in September, with the return leg scheduled for November 2024 in Luanda.
Despite Ghana’s recent struggles in the last two AFCON tournaments, Gonçalves remains confident in his team’s ability to challenge one of Africa’s football giants. He acknowledged Ghana’s rich football history and emphasized the importance of confronting strong teams to improve.
“I’ve been with the Angolan national team for five years, and in that time, we’ve developed a mentality that we want to compete with the biggest countries in African football. It’s not about being afraid but about challenging ourselves to play against the best teams. Facing Ghana, the third-best team in Africa, is a wonderful opportunity for us. Only Egypt and Cameroon have a better history than Ghana,” Gonçalves told Ghanasportspage.com.
He continued, “Ghana has quality players from the Premier League, Ligue 1, Portugal, and other top leagues. For us, it’s about being brave, playing football, and doing our best to challenge ourselves and aim for the win. Getting the three points is crucial, and we will give our all to achieve that.”
Angola will kick off their TotalEnergies CAF AFCON Morocco 2025 qualifying campaign with an away match against Ghana at the Baba Yara Stadium on September 5th.
2025 AFCON Qualifier: “We will challenge ourselves to get a win against Ghana” – Angola coach Pedro Goncalves
