Group A: Algeria, Angola, Mali, Malawi

Angola have made four African Nations Cup appearances but never won the cup before. As host nation the southern African country would be hoping to repeat history as every host nation since 1992 has gone pass the first round in this competition.

The Palancas Negras, or Black Antelopes have their eyes fixed on the trophy and have prepared well for their home tournament with several friendlies - 2-0 win over Togo, and draws with the likes of Ghana, Senegal and Cameroon.

Coach Jose Manuel knows there is little room for errors as the pressure mounts on them as host to keep the fans at the stadiums. Reports say the 2010 tournament is likely to mark the end of the international careers for some of the current crop like Flavio, and they will be keen to bow out in style.

Angola qualified automatically for the 2010 competition as hosts, not needing to go through the typical qualification that the other 15 sides endured to make it to the continental showpiece.

The player to watch is Manucho Goncalves. He is a talented striker, strong and fast, able to hold the ball up well while not afraid to run at defenders and try his luck with shots on goal from distance, according to a Goal.com profile. He was recently in the news due to trouble between himself and the coach, but the Angolan fans will hope that the situation is sorted out so the attacker can do his best to impress in front of his home support.

The man who moved from Manchester United to Real Valladollid last summer will be keen to fulfill the massive expectations of the home fans.

Angola can not afford to miss this chance of being crowned African Champions. Their home fans would see anything less than a semi-final place as failure. It would be tough for them to lift the cup but they are capable of a possible third place finish.

Malawi are making a return to the African Cup finals after a 26-year absence and have the potential to pull surprises. They have an arduous task to come out of this group as one of the best two.



“The Kinnah Phiri coached side might not be a star studied side like Ivory Coast or Ghana but they have a big match temperament and with nothing to lose they will be underestimated at their opponents’ peril,” a Goal.com report said.

The Flames have never won a game in this tournament before and that automatically makes them the minnows of the group. However, their journey to Angola 2010 reveals the underdogs have a lot under their sleeves to showcase at Angola. They placed second behind Egypt in a group also containing DR Congo and Djibouti. They beat Egypt and DR Congo to finish three points ahead of the latter. Esau Kanyenda and Russel Mwafulirwa are the best known of a highly unknown group.

Coach Kinnah Phiri will be hoping the tag of underdogs can propel his side to win at least one of their group matches. Three points in this tournament would no doubt be celebrated by Malawian fans, Insidefutbol.com noted.

Algeria are no doubt the favourite for this group. They beat arch-rivals Egypt to qualify for the World Cup and are coming into the game to justify why they are one of the six representatives of Africa at the next summer World Cup.

Coach Rabah Saadane is banking his hopes on VfL Wolfsburg midfielder Karim Ziani. The attacking midfielder is a capable dribbler and passer with great vision. Furthermore, the playmaker works hard on the defensive end and is not afraid to go in for a crunching tackle when he deems it necessary, Goal.com stated about him.

The Fennecs have been poor in the Nations Cup recently, they have even failed to qualify since 2004 and the coach cannot afford to fail this time. They can win the African cup if they really want to instead of putting all their hopes on the World Cup which seems far fetched.



Mali are perennial underachievers. They will be looking to have a good tournament in Angola to ease the disappointment of failing to qualify for the World Cup. Besides their general hope of making it to the finals their FA has set a quarter-final target for them.

Coached Stephen Keshi has several options and talents at his disposal. They have the likes of European stars like Barcelona’s Seydou Keita, Sevilla hit-man Fredi Kanoute and Real Madrid midfielder Mahamaddou Diarra to go beyond a quarter-final berth.

Mali qualified for Angola after coming third in their WC/AFCON qualifying group behind Ghana and Benin. The Eagles had nine points in six games where they won two, drew three and lost one.

Insidefutbol.com reported that on paper Mali have a side that can rub shoulders with the continent’s giants, but with low morale seeping through the ranks after the disappointing World Cup qualifying campaign Mali look a poor bet to pip Algeria or Angola to a quarter-final place.

Prediction:

Angola and Algeria might make it from this group.