Angola seek to put the seal on the greatest year in their soccer history with a record-breaking fourth triumph in the Cosafa Castle Cup when they face Zambia in Lusaka in Saturday’s final.
Angola drew two of their three matches in a surprisingly proficient World Cup debut performance in Germany in June and came within one goal of reaching the African Nations Cup quarterfinals in Egypt at the start of the year.
Unbeaten in their last five games, Angola have also won their first two matches in the qualifiers for the next Nations Cup finals in Ghana.
They return to Zambia in a bid to repeat their triumph in the annual Southern African championship final of two years ago, when they overcame their hosts in a post-match penalty shoot-out after a goalless draw at Luisaka’s Independence stadium.
That win marked their third triumph in the regional tournament and set the tone for surprise World Cup qualification one year later and a berth at the Nations Cup finals for the first time since 1998.
Angola will have only six of their World Cup squad in Lusaka, hampered by Saturday’s match falling outside Fifa’s international calendar and, as a result, they are unable to call upon their considerable foreign legion.
But they will start as favourites against a Zambian side, still shell-shocked by defeat at home by South Africa in the Nations Cup qualifiers earlier this month.
Coach Patrick Phiri’s continued tenure is tenuous and he, too, will be without many key overseas-based players.
But he has received a boost with the unexpected availability of three key foreign-based stars, whose clubs are fortuitously not in league action this weekend.
Chris Katongo and Billy Mwanza return from the South African league and captain Elijah Tana is back to marshal the defence after his recent move to the United Arab Emirates.
Zambia are bidding to win the trophy for a third time, having taken the first two editions in 1997 and 1998. They have also been runners-up for the last two years, losing last year’s final to Zimbabwe. – Reuters