By Camille Powell
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 12, 2006; E11

COLOGNE, Germany, June 11 -- The two teams stood side by side on the field, as they always do before a match. On one side was an erstwhile colonial power; on the other, the country it once ruled. It wasn't enough that Angola was making its World Cup debut after 20 years of trying to qualify; the Palancas Negras -- Black Impalas -- had to face Portugal.

A victory over Portugal is what every Angolan wants, Coach Luis Oliveira Goncalves said in the weeks leading up to the tournament. But Pauleta's goal in the fourth minute was enough to give Portugal a 1-0 victory, and the Black Impalas had to be content with playing in an entertaining, wide-open game before a sellout crowd of 45,000 at Rhein Energy Stadium. "It's sad we lost, of course, but we're proud to be here and can play in the tournament because Africa has many strong teams," Angolan forward Pedro Manuel Mantorras said. "For the first game in a World Cup it was very good, and the fact is Portugal didn't [win convincingly]. But they are more experienced and that counts a lot."

Most teams in the tournament are more experienced than Angola. Its football federation was established in 1979, four years after the country gained its independence from Portugal, and its first attempt at qualifying for the World Cup was in 1986. A 27-year civil war, which ended in 2002, devastated the country. When the soccer team secured a spot in the World Cup -- ahead of African power Nigeria -- it was cause for celebration. Fabrice Akwa, the team captain, proclaimed that the country proved that it is "not just about oil, war and poverty."

Portugal and Angola are inextricably linked, particularly in soccer. Eight Angolans play for teams in the Portuguese league (only three are on first division sides, however) and another four once played in Portugal. Angola's football federation searched Portugal for players with Angolan ancestry; that's how starting midfielder Paulo Figueiredo, for instance, found himself with Angola. His parents were Portuguese settlers who left shortly after Angola declared its independence; his debut in a 2003 friendly in Luanda marked the first time he had returned to the country of his birth in 28 years.

Despite the connections, the history on the field between the teams had been unpleasant. Portugal won the first meeting, 6-0, in 1989, and when the teams met again in 2001, the game was abandoned with 20 minutes to play after four Angolans received red cards for dirty tackles and were ejected. Portugal was winning 5-1 at the time.

But there was no animosity this time, despite a combined 49 fouls and five yellow cards. Portugal -- which wanted to avoid a repeat of the last World Cup, when it was beaten by the United States in the opener and then failed to advance out of group play -- took control of the game early.

Just 15 seconds in, Portugal forward Simao Sabrosa played the ball ahead to Pauleta behind the defense, and he pushed it past goalkeeper Joao Ricardo but just wide right. Three and a half minutes later, Pauleta -- Portugal's career leading scorer -- atoned with his 47th international goal. Luis Figo accelerated past defender Joao Jamba on the left side, drawing Joao Ricardo off his line, and sent the ball across the middle to Pauleta for an easy finish.

At that point, the Black Impalas looked overwhelmed in a stadium that seemed to be filled with enthusiastic Portuguese fans. Portugal continued to create dangerous chances in the first half, even without Deco, who injured his foot in a collision with Costinha during training. Figo, who was named the man of the match, seemed to be everywhere, controlling the action.

Cristiano Ronaldo had two near-misses; his header off a Figo corner kick bounced off the crossbar, and his right-footed blast from just inside the box was knocked away by Joao Ricardo shortly before halftime. But the Portuguese attack slowed in the second half, and their fans expressed their displeasure whenever they chose to work the ball around the back line rather than push forward.

Angola settled down after the first 15 minutes. Akwa attempted two spectacular overhead kicks, but connected on only one, sending the ball over the goal. "It was a tough game," Portugal Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said. "The early goal calmed us down and we could have got three or four more. But in the second half, the Angolans improved and at times they were better than us."