“I am delighted and proud of this victory although I didn’t expect this dramatic scenario,” Michel told a press conference after Saturday’s game.

“Some people said we didn’t deserve to go to the World Cup at the expense of Cameroon, but today we proved that we earned our ticket to Germany.”

Michel’s side raced to grab a hard-fought 12-11 victory on penalties after the normal and extra-time ended in a 1-1 draw.

Ivory Coast will play Nigeria, who beat Tunisia in a penalty shoot-out earlier on Saturday, in the semis on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Cameroon coach Artur Jorge said he wished his side can finish the game before the shoot-out especially with his team having several scoring opportunities.

The Portuguese coach refused to talk about his future with Cameroon following the exit of the African Cup, stressing that he is not concerned about this issue at the moment.