'I'm Happy to Face Ghana' - Cape Verde Coach

At the Africa Cup of Nations, Cape Verde's fairytale run might have defied pre-tournament expectations for many.

While the likes of Morocco, Zambia and Algeria have already embarked on their journey home, the Blue Sharks, making their tournament debut have berthed into the quarter-finals.


That's the surprising aspect of the strength of the African game but for the man behind Cape Verde's success, Lucio Antunes, his next task, playing Ghana, is the challenge that he is looking forward to.


On Saturday in Port Elizabeth with four-time winners, the Black Stars who topped Group B, the West African islanders advanced ahead of Angola and Morocco from Group A to set up the last-eight clash.

"We have played three good games. We came here very determined, and I'm very happy about what we have achieved."


"They(Ghana) were the strongest team in Group B," Antunes, a friend to Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho said.


"We are happy to play against them because they are one of the best in Africa and at this stage of the competition we have to come up against such teams. We will now simply keep on working hard and try to win the next game."