At a press conference, the Portuguese coach admitted that the mission will not be easy, due to the potential of Nigeria, which has three continental titles, unlike Angola, which has never made it past the quarter-finals.
"For us it is a great opportunity to be able to be tomorrow [Friday] against Nigeria, an African colossus, a worthy representative of African football at a global level, even for all the representations it has had in World Championships", he said.
Pedro Gonçalves says that he will "play with an extremely powerful team", but that he looks "at this game from the perspective of an opportunity that was won with a lot of work, with a lot of sweat, resilience, with a lot of determination".
"So far we have passed several goals and we have overcome several barriers and we have said that, reaching the quarter-finals, our ambition will be to be immortal, and being immortal is to reach the final and win that final", he assumed.
Nigerian coach, José Peseiro, also admitted that this will not be an easy game for his team, saying that "it is a pleasure to play against a brotherly country".
"I congratulate Angola for the work it has done, its players, its coach, and certainly its structure. We know the Angola team, we know the players, we know the value they have, the quality they have, We know their ability to sacrifice, their discipline, they are a team that defends and is very supportive", he said.
Despite saying that he respects Angola, as he would if it were "any other, as they are in the quarter-finals and a team that deserves to be in the quarter-finals, certainly has their goals".
"We want to win just as Angola wants to win, we are confident and we know it will be a difficult, tough and emotional game, but we want to win", he assured.
The two teams have already faced each other 12 times, with a slight advantage for the Nigerians who have won three times against the Angolans twice, and drawn seven times.
The last confrontation between the two was in 2018, at CHAN, an African competition reserved for players who play in domestic championships, with the Nigerians winning 2-1.
Angola will face Nigeria this Friday, in the quarter-finals of the 34th edition of the African Cup of Nations, at the Félix Houphouet-Boigny stadium, in Abidjan, starting at 5pm local time (6pm in Angola).
The match between the Angolan and Nigerian teams will be 'whistle' by three referees from Senegal. According to Angop, the trio is headed by Sy Issa, who will have the assistance of Camara Djibril and Bangoura Nouha, while Bouh Abdel Aziz (Mauritania) will be the fourth referee.
Furthermore, the national team does not present clinical cases. Players Fredy, Gelson Dala and Show caused some concern due to some medical situations, however the national team's medical department has already given them 'clearance' to take the field.
