Luanda - After Angola's participation in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON´2023) with unprecedented numbers, Angolan players continue to gain prominence in the clubs where they play in the diaspora, with Zito Luvumbo and Fredy Ribeiro standing out last weekend.
The striker Zito Luvumbo, 21, showing its grace by playing for the Cagliari club of the Italian Serie A, on Sunday scored the equalising goal (1-1) against Napoli in the game of the 26 round of the tournament in the Sardenha Unipol Domus stadium, thus once again earned the confidence of coach Claudio Ranieri for the clash against the 2022/23 season champions.
Fredy Ribeiro is another player whose highlight was his club Eyupspor's 3-2 win over Sakaryaspor in the 24th round of the Turkish Second League.
The 33-year-old Angolan midfielder provided the pass for the first goal of the match, scored by the 32-year-old Moroccan Regattin.
Fredy Ribeiro has already made seven assists this season in 17 games for Eyupspor, scoring one goal. He also made three appearances for Antalyaspor before switching clubs.
With the win, Eyupspor remains top of the Second League with 58 points.
The national team captain continues to justify his status as the main player at the recently ended 2023 African Nations Championship, held in 2024 in Côte d'Ivoire.
At the CAN, in which both players played a key role, Angola finished top of group D with seven points, scoring nine goals against just four conceded, setting a new record at this stage of the competition.
For the first time, Angola won three games in the final phase of a AFCON and achieved their best ever score in a group stage (seven).
The five points achieved in 2008, in Ghana, and in 2010, on Angolan soil, were the best records achieved until then.
Overall, the national team beat Mauritania (3-2), Burkina Faso (2-0), Namibia (3-0), drew with Algeria (1-1) and lost to Nigeria (0-1).
MC/MRA/jmc
