No divided loyalties for Angola's Dinis
LUANDA, June 8 (Reuters) Angolan-born former Portuguese international Joaquim Dinis could be excused mixed emotions when the two countries meet at the World Cup in Cologne on Sunday.
But the 58-year-old has no divided loyalties, he gave up a glittering career in Portugal to return to Angola and will attend the Group D match as part of the southern African country's delegation.
Dinis is Angola's footballing ambassador, an icon in the country for his role in developing the game there after independence from the Portuguese 31 years ago.
''It's going to be a very emotive game,'' he told Reuters in an interview. ''I will be on edge.
''There is a lot of sentiment, a lot of patriotism, it could be an extraordinary match.
''For us, the World Cup final will be our match against Portugal.
They were the colonial power but we hope to show we are at the same level.'' Former striker Dinis won 14 caps for Portugal between 1970 and 1973, scoring four goals.
Born in Luanda, he was reluctant to take up an offer to go to Sporting Lisbon but said he moved to Portugal after his father received a visit from the security police.
Dinis was an active participant in the pro-independence movement and played in his spare time for a collection of Portuguese-based footballers called 'Casa d'Angola', who sought to promote the cause of independence.
He also won two Portuguese championships and three cups before joining Porto in 1975.
Dinis left Porto a year later, at the age of 28, to return home to play for and coach the new Angola team.
He took charge of their first three games, all against Cuba, playing, selecting the side and scoring the second goal for the fledgling footballing nation.
STRONG STANCE Mateus Goncalves's history of Angolan football, 'Trumunu', hails Dinis as the country's best footballer of all time, for his strong nationalist stance and his on-field achievements on the European stage.
''The situation then was a lot different to now and in a way it was a privilege to be able to go and play in Portugal,'' said Dinis.
Dinis continued to play for Angola until 1980 before retiring at his first club AS Aviacao and then embarking on a career as a coach and administrator.
Now, Aviacao's small stadium, within the grounds of Luanda airport and boasting one of the first artificial surfaces on the African continent, bears his name.
Dinis still works as the coach of the country's under-17 side and as an adviser to national coach Luis Oliveira Goncalves.
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