VLT images in BVI are used to identify the optical counterparts to bright CHANDRA X-ray points sources discovered by Kraft et al .
( 2001 , ApJ , 560 , 675 ) in NGC5128 .
Of a total of 111 X-ray point sources with L _ { X } > 2 \times 10 ^ { 36 } ergs s ^ { -1 } present in a 56 arcmin ^ { 2 } 
field centered on this galaxy , 58 have optical counterparts .
Based on the sizes , optical magnitudes and colors , 20 new globular cluster counterparts of X-ray sources are identified , plus 3 identified based on their sizes .
This brings the total number of globular cluster X-ray sources in this galaxy to 33 , and establishes that 30 \% of the X-ray point sources in NGC5128 are associated with globular clusters .
These X-ray globular clusters occupy the brightest end of the globular cluster luminosity function , indicating that bright low-mass X-ray binaries are preferentially found in massive clusters .
Most of the globular clusters with X-ray sources have red colors , with 1.0 < V - I < 1.5 , indicating that low-mass X-ray binaries are preferentially formed in metal-rich clusters .
The NGC5128 X-ray globular cluster sources are brighter in comparison with the Milky Way sources : there are 24 globular clusters with X-ray sources of L _ { x } > 10 ^ { 37 } erg sec ^ { -1 } .
There is , however , no globular cluster X-ray source in NGC5128 as bright as expected for an accreting black hole .
In addition , 31 optical counterparts of X-ray point sources that are not associated with globular clusters are identified .
Finally , 53 X-ray point sources ( 48 % of the population ) , do not have any optical counterparts down to the faintest magnitude limits ( B = 25 ) .