Angola out to dent Egypt's hopes

Angola will go head to head with Egypt in their penultimate 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification Group F match at the Estádio 11 de Novembro in Luanda on Friday.

Kick-off is at 9:00 pm CAT.

Palancas Negras are seeking redemption after their hopes of qualifying for next year's World Cup finals were ended by Gabon, who defeated them 2-0 in Franceville on October 11.

The 2006 World Cup participants are placed fourth on the Group F standings with three points which they collected from their 3-1 win over Gabon at home on October 8.

Pedro Gonzalez, the Angola head coach, has backed the Pharaohs to finish at the top of Group F and progress to the next round of qualifying with his side's hopes having diminished. 

“The Egyptian team, as we said, is the most prominent candidate to qualify for the next round, and it has already proven that, especially after winning the Libyan national team twice," Gonzalez said on FilGoal. 

“The Angola national team now has no chance of qualifying and it has become non-existent.

“Carlos Queiroz [Egypt head coach benefited from the presence of Mohamed Salah and Mohamed Elneny, and their presence clearly increased the quality of the Egyptian national team.”

Meanwhile, Egypt took control of Group F when they defeated Libya at home on October 8, before claiming a convincing 3-0 victory away on October 11.

The Pharaohs are sitting at the top of the group standings - four points clear of second-placed Libya with the Egyptians needing a win against Angola to secure their place in the next round. 

Roger De Sa, the Egypt assistant coach, explained their team selection criteria with Pharaohs' regulars Tarek Hamed and Ramadan Sobhi having been omitted from the latest squad. 

“Angola is a good team and certainly aspires to beat Egypt, and we know that well and we are preparing for the match," De Sa said. 

"We choose young players in the list not only to go down the average age, but also for their abilities, and after following the league matches

"We have a large group of players available to join the team, and we created a combination capable of leading the team and our goal is to reach the best.”

This will be the seventh between Angola and Egypt across all competitions.

The Pharaohs boast an unbeaten record against Palancas Negras having recorded four victories and two draws.