Luanda - The national coach, Pedro Gonçalves, said on Saturday night that at the beginning of the game against Namibia, “things got complicated, and that it was necessary to maintain focus for the 3-0 victory, and the consequent next phase qualification.
In a press conference, after the challenge of the round of 16 of the African Football Championship (CAN`2023), played at the Peace Stadium, in Bouaké (Côte d`Ivoire), he praised the players' attitude towards achieving the objective.
"We are happy with the victory and the subsequent qualification. We knew that the opponent could make things difficult, even more so when we lost to Neblú", he maintained, alluding to the goalkeeper's red card, in the 17th minute for a play with his hands outside his area.
Regarding the performance throughout the African Championship, the coach considers that the team has the three sectors (defense, midfield and attack) well interconnected.
He said he was not concerned with just one sector, explaining that the defensive aspect starts with the forwards and ends with the defenders, so everyone is involved.
Angola will face in the quarter-finals, next Friday, in Abidjan, Nigeria, which also beat Cameroon on Saturday by 2-0. MC/CF/DOJ
