Oct 15 (Reuters) – The Cape Verde Islands will become the smallest country to compete at an African Nations Cup finals after qualifing at the expense of Cameroon and their remarkable rise is the culmination of a project to target ‘top talent’.
The Portuguese-speaking country’s elimination of the four-times winners in Sunday’s final qualifying round ranks as one of the biggest shocks in the tournament’s history but it has been on the cards in recent years.
Just 10 years ago the ‘Tubaroes Azul’ (Blue Sharks) beat Mauritania 2-0 at home to record their first win in a competitive international and now they are ranked 51st in the world.
“There was a conscious decision by the federation to embark on a project that would pursue the top talent available and after many years of hard work this has now come to pass,” said Joao de Deus, coach of Portuguese second division club Oliveirense, who was in charge of Cape Verde in 2008 and 2009.
By tapping into a large number of descendants of migrants who have been steadily leaving the island archipelago over the last century, Cape Verde football’s ability far exceeds the country’s 500,000-strong population.
“We now have some 90 percent of our squad members who are playing at clubs in Europe, in Portugal, France, Spain, Holland and other countries,” coach Lucio Antunes said in a recent telephone interview.
“These are professional players who are desperate to show what they can do at the Nations Cup finals. It has been so easy to work with them because of their experience and their desire,” he added.
FAIRYTALE ELEMENT
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