AFCON 2023: Angola Coach Pays Respect to Super Eagles Ahead of Quarter-Final Tie

• Pedro Goncalves has hailed the quality of the Super Eagles squad
• The Angola coach is impressed with Nigeria’s impressive talents
• Nigeria will battle Angola in the quarterfinals of AFCON 2023

Angola coach Pedro Goncalves has reckoned the Super Eagles are full of quality and talented players that can cause problems for his side when both teams clash in the Africa Cup of Nations.

The Black Antelopes must overcome Nigeria if they are to reach the semi-finals of Africa’s biggest football competition as they gear up for their quarter-final tie against the Super Eagles.

According to All Nigeria Soccer, Goncalves noted that Angola are not scared of Nigeria even though they do not have the luxury of talented players like the three-time AFCON winners.

"Occasionally, our performance may have come as a surprise to the outside world, but for us, it certainly wasn't.

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"Nigeria is an African colossus full of talented players, many of them playing in the Premier League or reference leagues in Europe, such as the Italian league and the Portuguese league.”

Angola will be without first-choice goalkeeper Neblu, who was shown a straight red card in their Round of 16 victory against Namibia for handling the ball outside the box.

Super Eagles ready for Angola

Meanwhile, Super Eagles winger Ademola Lookman has sent a warning to Angola, declaring that the three-time AFCON champions are ready for the Black Antelopes ahead of their quarterfinal clash, Complete Sports reports.

The Atalanta winger labelled Angola a ‘good team’ and reckoned Pedro Goncalves's team would be tough to break down due to how compact they have been in the tournament so far.

Lookman was Nigeria’s hero as the forward scored twice as the Super Eagles defeated arch-rivals Cameroon 2-0 to advance to the quarterfinals of the AFCON.

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Super Eagles coach weary of Angola

Earlier, Sports Brief reported Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro has cautioned his players against underestimating Angola ahead of their quarterfinal meeting on Friday, February 2.

Peseiro reckons the Black Antelopes are having a fantastic tournament after equalling their best AFCON appearance by reaching the quarterfinals for the fourth time in their history.

Angola thrashed Namibia 3-0 in Round 16 and has been one of the most exciting teams in the competition. They also stunned Burkina Faso in the group phase.