RUSTERNBURG–After heading into the tie as unlikely contenders, Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi praised his side for a spirited display in their 2-1 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) quarterfinal victory over Ivory Coast in Phokeng, near Rustenburg, on Sunday evening.A goal in either half from Emmanuel Emenike and Sunday Mba booked the Super Eagles their spot in the semifinals while the Ivorians crashed out after entering the tournament as favourites once again."I want to sincerely thank my players for everything they did today,” Keshi said. "The players showed character. It’s the kind of character that I know we have in Nigeria. We always fight, fight, fight."I had absolute 120 percent confidence in my players and we had to get ourselves ready for the game. We weren’t going to come here and just give it to Ivory Coast.”The Elephants’ Cheick Tiote cancelled out the opener from Emenike, but Nigeria-based Mba regained the lead for the west Africans, 12 minutes from time."It was not an easy game, we tried to speed the game up. We tried to cut players like (Didier) Drogba and Yaya Toure out of the game,” Keshi said.Keshi – captain of Nigeria’s victorious 1994 Afcon outfit – added that he was proud of his young side and said he was confident of going all the way in the competition."My team is progressing every game, there is great discipline in the team, I just hope that we keep that up,” he said.