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AFCON 2019: Profile of Guinea-Bissau national team

By Vincent Ashitey
AFCON 2019: Profile of Guinea-Bissau national team
AFCON 2019: Profile of Guinea-Bissau national team
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Guinea-Bissau is in Group D of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt alongside defending champions Cameroon, Ghana and Benin.

Nicknamed the Djurtus, they have never qualified for the FIFA World Cup finals and AFCON 2019 will be their second appearance at Africa's showpiece tournament.

The Guinea-Bissau national football team played their first international match on June 2, 1952, losing 3–1 to British Gambia. Their biggest defeat came on July 22, 2017, losing 7-0 to Guinea while they recorded their highest margin in the game against Benin on November 3, 2001 winning by 7-2.

Baciro Candé

The head coach of the national team is former professional footballer Baciro Candé who took who returned to take over the team on March 2016 after having a stint with them from 2003-2010.

The Guinea-Bissau national football team most capped player is retired Adelino Lopes who featured 36 times and notched 2 for the Djurtus.

Read also:

AFCON 2019: Profile of Cameroon national team

AFCON 2019: Profile of Ghana national team

Retired striker Cícero Semedo is the nations all-time top scorer with 6 goals in 14 appearances, plays for Portuguese side Trofense in Portugal

Cícero represented Portugal at youth level. He earned his first senior cap for Guinea-Bissau on 9 October 2010, playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–1 away loss against Angola for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

The Djurtus is currently ranked 118th in the World and 31st in Africa, with its lowest ranking coming on February–March 2010 being placed 195 whilst achieving their highest in November 2016–January 2017 occupying the 68th position.

Slovak club FK Senica midfielder Zezinho (José Luís Mendes Lopes Djafal) who is the captain of the national team is the star for the Djurtus.

 Zezinho (José Luís Mendes Lopes Djafal)

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