- Angola became the first team to reach the 2023 AFCON quarter-finals after beating Namibia 3-0 on Saturday
- Dala grabbed a first-half brace before Mabululu netted a classy third to seal the win in a game that saw both sides finish with ten men
Angola became the first team to reach the 2023 AFCON quarter-finals after beating Namibia 3-0 during the Angola vs Namibia round of 16 fixture.
Gelson Dala scored two goals in the first half before Mabululu netted a classy third to seal the win in a game that saw both sides finish with ten men.
Angola goalkeeper Neblu was the first to be sent off in the 17th minute after handling Bethuel Muzeu’s shot outside the box. Namibia also found themselves reduced to ten men with five minutes left before the end of the first period when the match’s referee Dahane Beida showed a second yellow card to defender Lubeni Haukongo.
Angola vs Namibia. Photo/ Football on Dailysports.
This is the third time in history that Angola have advanced to the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations. They will face Nigeria in the last eight after the Super Eagles secured a comfortable 2-0 victory over Cameroon later on Saturday evening.
Angola Vs Namibia
The first half of the Angola vs Namibia game was one of the most dramatic in AFCON history as there were two goals and two red cards.
The game started in the worst way possible for favourites Angola when goalkeeper Neblu was shown a straight red card for handling outside the penalty area after Namibia’s Bethuel Muzeu tried to chip the ball over him. Saturday’s event was not the first time that Neblu had handled the ball outside the box. The 30-year-old did the same mistake in Angola’s group stage victory over Burkina Faso and was lucky not to be sent off.
Angola’s goalkeeper number two Antonio Dominique was called into action immediately to save the free-kick that followed.
Just as it seemed Namibia were going to take control of the Angola vs Namibia match, they were dealt a blow of their own when Prins Tjiueza, who has been one of their top performers in Ivory Coast, was forced off injured.
Angola would take control of the match afterwards and eventually take the lead after a nicely worked move that was completed by Gelson Dala in the 38th minute. Trailing by a goal to nil, Namibia had a lot of work to do, but things got even more difficult when they were also reduced to ten men. This was after defender Haukongo committed a bookable offence while already in the referee’s book.
The free-kick that resulted from Haukongo’s red card turned out to be costly for Namibia as Angola doubled their lead from it. Once again, it was Dala who found the back of the net after rising highest in the 18-yard-box. While it was his second goal of the match, he increased his tally in the 2023 AFCON to four.
Things cooled down a bit in the second half after a very chaotic 45 minutes at Stade de la Paix in Bouake. Whereas Namibia tried creating chances, Angola opted to pack the bus in order to protect their two-goal advantage.
Peter Shalulile had a golden opportunity to reduce the deficit for Namibia shortly after the restart but he struck his shot over the goal. Angola would seal the win in the 66th minute after Mabululu curled a beautiful finish past Namibia substitute keeper Lloyd Kazapua.
Angola are through to the 2023 AFCON quarter-finals after securing a 3-0 victory over Namibia on Saturday. Photo/ Eurosport.
This was Angola’s first ever knockout win at an AFCON final, with their previous two quarter-finals coming when the tournament had just 16 teams participating. Whereas Namibia will be disappointed for exiting this year’s AFCON, they will be proud to have reached the knockout stage for the first time in history. However, they will look back at goalkeeper Neblu’s red card early in the game as a missed opportunity.
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