The forward arrived late (along with Flavio) to the team camp prior to the friendly against Cameroon, according to Manuel Jose.
Flavio apologised to the coach but was still sent home, although Manuel Jose noted his apology and would later select him for other friendlies. Manucho however, got ready to train without speaking to the coach and offering his apologies.

Manuel Jose then conditioned the player’s return to an apology.

Manucho did attempt an apology and an “excuse” through the media but it was deemed “half-hearted” and unsincere, since he claimed that it was not his fault. The coach reacted furiously to Manucho’s problematic apology, and left Manucho’s future in the National team unclear.

This is an unbelievable change of fortune for Manucho, who looked to be heading for stardom 2 years ago.

At the moment, if he wants to salvage his International career under Manuel Jose, he has to speak to Manuel Jose directly rather than through a newspaper or TV network.

The squad to face the Cape Verde and Senegal has been announced.

All eyes will be on Dominique Kivuvu who plays for N.E.C in Netherlands. Kivuvu will probably make his first appearance in an Angola shirt since finally opting to play for the Palancas Negras.

He had been hoping to play for the Dutch Olympic team in Beijing 2008, but was overlooked and failed to make the squad.

The other good news involves the absence of Jamba in the squad (this is news of the year!).

The current squad looks stronger than the one that performed in Ghana 2008, and is expected to shine in next year’s AFCON.

Credit must go to Manuel Jose for having an immediate impact on the national team.

Here is the squad to face Senegal and Cape Verde

Mario, Minguito and Joel (Interclube)
Kikas and Amaro (Benfica Luanda)
Lama, Jamuana, Chara, Job, Mabina and Nelo (Petro Atletico)
Roger (ASA), Enoque (Santos FC), Wilson (Recreativo Libolo)
Love (Primeiro de Agosto), Flavio (El Shabad), Gilberto (Al-Ahly)
Andre (Kuweit Club), Kali (Arles-Avignon), Kivuvu (NEC)
Djalma (Maritimo), Mantorras (SL Benfica), Mateus (Nacional)
and Manucho (Real Valladolid)

Manuel Jose played two different sides on each half of the game.
The Girabolistas (Angolan league players) + Mantorras all played in the first half of the match and struggled to break-down an unimpressive Togo side. The only positive during the first half was Mantorras’ display which showed everyone why he is still at SL Benfica despite his fitness deficiency.

The second half featured the National team regulars such as Flavio, Ze Kalanga and Mateus. The Palancas showed a tremendous improvement during the second half and it was not long before Flavio and Mateus scored a goal each to seal the result.

To be fair to Togo, they had administrative issues in the run-up to the match and only arrived in Portugal a couple of hours before the match.
As a result of these issues, Togo looked to be playing without a centre-forward, as their star player Adebayor looked like a lost child on the pitch and played most of the match as an ineffective centre-midfielder. Adebayor dropped to midfield in order to collect the ball, because he was not receiving any service in his preferred position.

Although 2-0 is not a bad result, it does not summarise the amount of chances that the Palancas wasted. On a good day, it would have been 4-0, but you won’t hear many complaints about the performance (they have moved up a level from the Angola that lost to Cape Verde).

The Palancas Negras’ next games will be against the Ivory Coast and Senegal on 5 and 9 September.

Bring on the competitive teams!

The rule change will benefit many African Nations as there are many players with african backgrounds who can gain from this change.

Angola would have benefitted from this in the World Cup 2006, as they looked to change the allegiance of players such as FC Porto’s defender Pedro Emanuel, who has a dual nationality. Unfortunately for the National team, Pedro Emanuel is now 34 years old and probably past his peak. It is unlikely that the FA will apply for a change of allegiance now.

There are those of course, who rejected the opportunity to play for the National team and chose to be considered for the Senior team of other Nations.

Among these players is Nando Rafael, who had the potential of being a decent striker for the National team, but decided against changing allegiance because of his wish of playing for Germany. Needless to say, he has never played for the German National team and only succeeded in attracting negative attention from the Angolan National team demanding fans. Do not expect to see him playing international football so soon (or ever!).

Originally, Manuel Jose left out the Angolan league’s top scorers (Love and David) because he was not aware of their form, although he later called them in place of Andre Makanga (who was not released by his club) and the injured Santana. The unavailability of those two players came as a blessing to Manuel Jose, as the demanding fans and media were already preparing their throats to criticise the manager’s choices.

In his press conference, Manuel Jose also claimed that the defence is the weakest part of the team and he will work to improve both the defence and the attack. He will do well to play someone other than Jamba in defence if he wants to honour that claim.

Curiously, he called Mantorras to the team and stated that he believes him to be the most efficient of the strikers in the team. “I plan to see why he is not used regularly by his club”, insisted the manager in his first press conference. Good point- Lets all wait and see how that turns out.

On a good note, the new manager seems to be making significant impact even before his first match, as he has pointed out that the National team needs to play in Angola more regularly, rather than playing its friendlies in Portugal.

While it is insane to expect instant positive results, a tactical improvement is expected over the course of the year.
The friendly against Guinea will be very important for the players (specially the likes of Mantorras and Jamba, if they are selected) as it could be their last chance to prove themselves worthy of a place in the squad.

Regardless of the result of this first friendly (unless Guinea wins 5-0), Manuel Jose should not be judged too harshly on his first performance.

Squad to face Guinea:

Goalkeepers: Lama (Petro de Luanda), Capoco (Recreativo do Libolo), Nuno (ASA)

Defenders: Asha, Loco, Jamuana (Petro de Luanda), Kumaca, Mingo Sanda (Primeiro de Agosto), Jamba (ASA), Marco Airosa (Nacional/Portugal), Rui Marques (Leeds Utd/England), Kaly (FC Sion/Switzerland)

Midfielders: Nelo, Xara, David (Petro de Luanda), Gilberto (Al ahly/Egypt), Dede (Pacos de Ferreira/Portugal), Ze Kalanga (Dinamo Bucharest/Romenia), Djalma (Maritimo/Portugal), Mateus (Nacional/Portugal)

Forwards: Manucho (Hull City/England), Flavio (Al Ahly/Egypt), Love (Primeiro de Agosto), Mantorras (Benfica/Portugal)

In the press conference, the FAF president Justino Fernandes also noted that Luis Felipe Scolari and Paulo Cesar Carpeggiani were contacted and considered for the job, but preference fell on Manuel Jose due to his knowledge of African football.

Manuel Jose was due to have his first match in charge of the National team in early June, but he requested more time to work with the players. The National team had two matches scheduled for June but will now have to cancel the earlier match.

The opposing teams were not revealed but the national team is thought to have an agreement to play a friendly against Hungary at some point this year. Manuel Jose also offered to exploit his good relationship with the Egyptian federation and negotiate a friendly against Egypt.

This is probably the best move for the National team and for once, the FAF has done a brilliant job in persuading a manager with great credentials.

The National team can now progress and have a good AFCON in 2010. I can’t wait to see Manuel Jose’s work with the National team.

I mentioned in earlier posts that the Palancas can only improve as they are currently at the very bottom, and this is a significant stepping stone to progress.

Good Times for the Palancas Negras!

Mabi De Almeida’s period as the national team manager was without a doubt one of the worst periods in the history of Angolan football.
The national team failed to win their last 4 friendly matches, and their performances suggested that the team had taken a backward step. A heavy defeat to Mali was followed by a poor display and eventual defeat to Cape Verde.

It was only a matter of time before the fans would start calling for the manager’s head. As the poor displays continued, the fans put an immense pressure on the FA to sack the manager (which surprisingly, they were slightly reluctant to do at first).

The decision was inevitable. There was simply no hope for the national team with Mabi in command.
It was hard enough to believe that a Physical Education graduate without any experience of managing a football team, could step up and lead a national team, let alone revive a team in crisis.

Zeca Amaral is in charge until the FA finds a suitable replacement. Fans will want to hang on to the hope that a decent manager will be hired. The worst possible scenario now, would be to leave Zeca Amaral (who was the assistant coach recently, just like Mabi was to Oliveira Goncalves) in charge of the national team during the AFCON.

Luis Felipe Scolari’s name has been mentioned as a possible replacement, as well as Al-Ahly coach Manuel Jose. It is however, more likely that the FA will hire a coach from the Girabola (Angolan league), as the AFCON is only a few months away.

Let’s hope that the FA make the right decision this time. Any manager with experience would be deemed decent, considering that Mabi de Almeida did not have any.

Following the humiliation at the hands of Mali, faithful fans expected a tactical improvement from the National team. When the fixture against Cape Verde was announced, some fans complained that the opposition was not capable of trully testing the National team- Cape Verde turned out to make short work of the National team. The Palancas lost 1-0 to a well organised Cape Verde side in a neutral venue (Portugal).

The issues with the National team are mostly the same. An inexperienced coach, poor tactical discipline on the field, failure to explore and try out new talent, and the list goes on.
All I can state for now is that at this rate, the Palancas will not win a single game (let alone reach the semi-finals) of the African Nations Cup.

Angola’s next match is against Morroco on Tuesday in Lisbon.

My prediction: Angola 0-2 Morroco

The Palancas created several chances in the first few minutes of the match but could not convert their chances. However, the highlight of the match is definetely the defensive errors made by the Angolan players. The vulnerability of the Angolan defence was beyond belief, with Marques, Asha and goalkeeper Lama all making critical mistakes.

The defeat should serve as a wake-up call to the Angolan FA (FAF), who are expecting the national team to reach at least the semi-finals of the AFCON.

Angolan manager Mabi de Almeida will face a massive criticism for the team’s performance. The National team has not lost by that margin in many years- Even against world-class opposition in recent years(e.g. Portugal), the team managed to avoid an embarrassing huge margin loss.

The National team’s next friendly is in march against a yet to be named opponent.

The deal is a perfect opportunity for the Angolan forward to establish himself in the Premiership. He is expected to feature (as a substitute) in Hull City’s next game against Arsenal.

The deal is good news for both Manucho and the Angolan national team, as it is vital for the national team that the forward regains his form.