It was a game that came within one goal of matching a 47-year-old record, but for all the excitement of a thrilling opening match at the African Nations Cup finals, the gloom over Angola only turned a shade darker.
Hoping to set aside the grisly images of the Cabinda bus attack that left two members of the Togo delegation dead and the West Africans heading for home, Angola's 'Palancas Negras' team looked set for some positive headlines when their side stormed into a four-goal lead against Mali in Sunday's first game of the tournament.
But instead of some welcome relief from the shock of Friday's horror, Angola's fans watched in disbelief as their side allowed a seemingly unassailable advantage slip and Mali forced a stunning 4-4 draw.
Mali's Seydou Keita, inexplicably left on the bench, came on after 35 minutes to engineer the turnaround with two goals and a cross that allowed Frederic Kanoute to score the best of the night's eight goals with a rocket-like header just three minutes from the end.
Earlier, Angola had their opponents on the rack with two first half goals, both from the prolific striker Flavio. His long-standing combination with Gilberto again bore fruit for the Angolans as Gilberto provided the service from the left and Flavio's strength and guile did the rest.
Angola added two more goals in the second half, both from the penalty spot after Gilberto was twice brought down in clumsy challenges.
The first looked justified, and was duly converted by Gilberto himself, but the second a touch generous from the Egyptian referee.
Manucho, who had an anonymous game up front for Angola, scored the second penalty for a 4-0 lead with just a quarter-hour left.
But then Mali launched their comeback, albeit starting with some good fortune after an unnecessary spill from Angola's new goalkeeper, Carlos Fernandes. He fluffed a harmless-looking corner and allowed Keita to snap up the ball at the end of a goalmouth melee to make it 4-1.
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Then came Kanoute's header and suddenly Angola's defence looked in tatters, drained by the humid weather, which left the players looking exhausted and brings into question their decision to train in the cold of Portugal over the last month.
The last two goals came in referee's optional time at the end of the game. First Keita stole in unmarked at the back post to score and then Fernandes failed to hold onto a Keita shot and fellow substitute Mustapha Yattabare was first to the rebound.
The late rally by the Mali Eagles left the capacity 50,000-strong crowd at the brand new stadium stunned into silence, in marked contrast to the colourful opening ceremony that preceded the game.
The eight goals in a single match was one shy of the match in Kumasi, Ghana, in which Egypt beat Nigeria 6-3, a record that still stands from the 1963 finals.
