Egypt skipper Hossam Hassan kept his feet on the ground after his side's qualification to the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations.

"We are honored that we succeeded in making the Egyptian people happy," Hassan told Arab Radio and Television (ART) network after the match.

"But we still have a long way to go, and it will become even harder in the semi-finals."

The 39-year-old striker made his first appearance in the starting line-up against Congo and scored the second goal during the 4-1 victory.

This was Hassan's 11th goal in the African tournaments; tying Cameroon and Barcelona forward Samuel Eto'o and just three goals behind the tournament's top scoring record for one player.

Asked about the team's fluctuating performance in the match, the former Ahli and Zamalek star said: "Any team in the quarter-finals stage have certain aims and expectations and DR Congo were a very strong team and relied mainly on attacking.

"Nevertheless, we were able to defeat them with all the match’s disadvantages and now we will start preparing for our coming match against Senegal."

Meanwhile, Egypt goalkeeper Essam Al-Hadari congratulated the team and the fans for the victory and said that he was confident they could overcome DR Congo and that grabbing the Cup was their ultimate aim.

"Everybody knew that our sole purpose was to defeat DR Congo and we are intent on going all the way and reaching for the African Cup," Al-Hadari said.

Al-Hadari, who made a host of crucial saves throughout the match, scooped the Fair Play Award of the match.

This was his third award of in the tournament after being named best player twice in the group-stage matches.