AFCON 2025 Qualifiers: Angola coach, Pedro Gonçalves on Group F opposition and chances

Following their impressive showing at the last TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations, Angola have elevated their pedigree on the continent and to a large extent, outgrown the “Underdogs” title carried over many years.

Finished strong in a tightly contested Group D consisting of former African champions, Algeria, 2013 runners-up Burkina Faso as well as a stubborn Mauritania, before dispatching Namibia in the Round of 16, the Sable Antelopes were one of the best performing nations in Cote d’Ivoire.

However, with the impressive Cote d’Ivoire showing now behind their backs, the Sable Antelopes now look to Morocco 2025, where a tough Group F assignment stands in their way of making a historic 10th appearance at the continental finals.

Drawn in a dicey Group F consisting of four-time winners, Ghana and two highly determined sides in Sudan and Niger, coach Pedro Goncalves says that despite the unpredictable nature of the group, he believes Angola will do everything possible to book a place in Morocco.

“We believe that Angola has the potential to reach the Final Stage and that is a great goal that we have, which is to be present in all the major national team competitions. AFCON is a very important competition and we have seen our growth with the national team that revealed our performance in the last edition. Therefore, within our reach and with our resources, we will do everything to excel and be present in the Morocco in 2025”, said Goncalves.

CAFOnline summarises the coaches comments on each of Angola’s Group F opponents:

Ghana:

“They are the third with the best ranking, 4 titles and 24 participations, a very powerful team full of talents and with whom we recently played in the previous AFCON qualification, therefore, we know well the power which, despite ending up little lower than their expectations at the last AFCON, Ghana is still a very powerful team.”

Sudan:

“Sudan are also with a record that is the tenth best in the African Cup of Nations, with 9 participations, going through an excellent moment, leading their group in qualifying for the World Cup, in which they are with Senegal. This reveals their capability. They recently beat the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mauritania. They are another extremely strong team that has been progressing a lot, therefore, we will be in the presence of a very competitive Sudanese team, I'm sure of it.”

Niger:

“Niger team, which was the highest ranked team in pot 4 won’t be easy as well and them ranked highest will prove this. Therefore, it will be a very balanced qualifying group, which, according to the calendar presented to us, will all be played over three months; and now it's about preparing ourselves at an operational and logistical level, so that everything is together and the Angolan team represents the nation well against other strong teams.”

Angola open their TotalEnergies CAF AFCON Morocco 2025 Qualifiers campaign with an away clash to Ghana.

All qualifiers will be on a home-and-away basis to determine the top two finishers that will secure their tickets to Morocco.

TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Groups & Fixtures.