Angola humbles Senegal

Tamale, Jan. 27, GNA - Angola on Sunday surprised soccer fans including supporters of Senegal when they came from a goal down to beat Senegal by three goals to one in the first match of "Group D" of the Ghana 2008 at the Tamale Sports Stadium.

The Senegalese gave a false impression of carrying the day to the massive Tamale supporters rooting for them when Faye Abdouye hit the back of the net in the 20th minute to register the first goal. The goal came as a result of a free kick neatly taken by El Hadji Diouf, and Abdouye wasted no time to slot the ball into the net. The Angolans were not let down by the solitary goal but kept on with a fighting resilience as they tried to cancel the lead with their attempts going off target to end the first half.

The second half started in favour of the Angolans, who despite being down by a lone goal, persevered and fought gallantly and it came as no surprise when in the 50th minute their playmaker Alberto Mateus Manucho headed home to cancel the Senegalese lead.

From the 60th minute, the game was characterized with rough play with many dubbing it as the survival of the fittest as many of the players entered the books of the Algerian referee, Haimoudi Djamel. The Angolan coach made some substitutions, which proved to be the antidote to the Senegalese style of play and increased their goal tally to two in the 66th minute through Manucho, who was on target again with a header.

The second goal gave the Angolans more confidence and the determination to carry the day and worked relentlessly in search of another goal.

It was, therefore, no surprise when Flavio Amado nodded home another goal in the 76th minute to put the Senegalese beyond recovery. Even though the Senegalese made last minutes efforts to find the net, it was too late for them as the game coasted to an end leaving them and their supporters in anguish.