Angola are one of six teams to have at least seven points from the group stage of this edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, and they have been in excellent form so far. In particular, they beat Burkina Faso, then the top of the group, 2-0 in the final group game, against one of the four best third-placed teams. After a long anxious wait, Angola will sit back and wait for Namibia, one of their rivals in the Southern African derby.
Angola can play third in the other group in the round of 16, which means they get a more favourable pairing. But in fact, Angola is currently ranked 117th in the world, two places lower than Namibia's 115th. It's a psychological hurdle to overcome, but previous meetings have given them more psychological support, with six wins and six draws in 12 matches. They are expected to reach the last eight of the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time since 2010, when they were hosts.
Namibia's Africa Cup of Nations Group E was a disappointment, with both group games ending 0-0, and those fans who tuned in to watch the Africa Cup of Nations for the sake of spectacle were naturally disappointed. But that's just against neutral fans, not for Namibia, because it's enough to get them to the knockout rounds. After entering uncharted territory, this is in fact their first time in the knockout stages of the Africa Cup of Nations.
Regardless of the outcome, Namibia, nicknamed the "Warriors", are proud of what they have achieved. Considering that they had never won the Africa Cup of Nations before this edition, it was not until this edition that they had a breakthrough. They beat North African giants Tunisia in the top three in Africa in the group stage and kept two clean sheets in their three group games, giving them some confidence against Angola, despite being the underdogs.
Player of the match: Angola's main attacker, Mabruru, is a player who will be hard to beat, with four of his last six international goals coming in that second goal. Namibian goalkeeper Kazapuya has kept four clean sheets in his last six appearances for his country.
What to watch: In Angola's three group games of this Africa Cup of Nations, goals can be scored in each half of a single game. #Africa Cup of Nations##Africa Cup of Nations##Angola##Namibia##淘汰赛#