Emmanuel Emenike, left, celebrates after putting Nigeria 1-0 ahead against Ivory Coast in the Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal at Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg, South Africa.
(CNN) -- Another Africa Cup of Nations, another failure for the Ivory Coast's "golden generation."
But while Didier Drogba may never get the chance to lift the continent's coveted trophy, another African football superpower is on course to end its own long wait for success.
Nigeria set up a semifinal clash with Mali by beating the seemingly perennial tournament-favorite Ivorians 2-1 in Rustenburg on Sunday.
The "Super Eagles" have not won the title since 1994, a year the team reached fifth in the world rankings -- the highest by any African nation.
Since then Nigeria has had to settle for three third placings between 2002-10, and didn't even qualify for last year's tournament.
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Substitute Didier Drogba (left) celebrates with Yaya Toure after the midfielder put the Ivory Coast 2-0 ahead near the end of the Africa Cup of Nations Group D match against Tunisia in Rustenburg.
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Malian soldiers transport in a pickup truck a dozen suspected Islamist rebels on Friday, February 8, after arresting them north of Gao. A suicide bomber blew himself up on February 8 near a group of Malian soldiers in the northern city, where Islamist rebels driven from the town have resorted to guerilla attacks.
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It was a period of turmoil, as the country's president Goodluck Jonathan at first banned the national side for two years after a poor showing at the 2010 World Cup before world ruling body FIFA threatened even harsher sanctions, and the ruler backed down.
Under the guidance of former international player Stephen Keshi, Nigeria came through Group C with a win and two draws this month and then beat a side that the coach called "the top team on the continent."
"I want to thank God for this wonderful victory, and sincerely thank my players for everything they did today. I hope we can keep going to the final," the former Togo and Mali coach told reporters ahead of Wednesday's semi in Durban.
"Ivory Coast are the top team on the continent with lots of quality, so we tried to speed up and try to catch out players like Drogba and Yaya Toure.
"I'm glad my team is progressing in every game -- there is great discipline in the team and I just hope we keep going that way."
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Nigeria took the lead just before halftime when Emmanuel Emenike's free-kick went straight through Ivory Coast goalkeeper Boubacar Barry for his third goal of the tournament in South Africa.
Cheick Tiote leveled with a header from veteran captain Drogba's free-kick on the left, but Sunday Mba gave Nigeria victory as he beat three men and unleashed a 20-yard shot that was deflected past Barry.
The 24-year-old is one of five Nigeria-based players in the 23-man squad -- none from the country's top league featured in the 2008 or 2010 finals.
"The boys showed character. When I played for Nigeria I had to fight, fight, fight and they did that today," Keshi said.
"When the Ivorians leveled we tried to defend and work out our tactics, and we scored again. Sunday came up with a beautiful, beautiful goal."
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Ivory Coast coach Sabri Lamouchi took responsibility for his team's surprise exit.
"I put forward the team I judged to be the best to pose problems to a good Nigeria side," said the Frenchman, who took over after last year's penalty shootout defeat in the final against Zambia.
"Of course our aim was to win the title, and for certain players this could be their last chance so, yes, there is disappointment in the dressing room.
"It's a great sadness for me as the players were working with one objective -- to win this Nations Cup -- but it proved not to be enough."
Drogba and most of the Elephants squad will now head back to Europe -- the 34-year-old will join his new Turkish club Galatasaray, where Ivory Coast teammate Emmanuel Eboue also plays.
Two-time African player of the year Yaya Toure will go back to England with his brother Kolo to help Manchester City's faltering Premier League title defense.
Meanwhile, Burkina Faso won the battle of first-time quarterfinalists in Sunday's other game, beating Togo 1-0 after extra time at Nelspruit.
Jonathan Ptroipa headed the only goal from a corner in the 105th minute to set up a clash with four-time champion Ghana at the same venue on Wednesday.
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Cheick Tiote leveled for the tournament favorite but Sunday Mba's 78th-minute winner earned Nigeria a semifinal clash against Mali.
The Ivory Coast's veteran captain Didier Drogba (left) had been hoping to win the continent's title for the first time.
Burkina Faso also went through to the last four, winning 1-0 against fellow first-time quarterfinalists Togo. An extra-time header from Jonathan Pitroipa earned "The Stallions" a clash with Ghana.
Former Chelsea star Drogba had been dropped from the starting line-up for the first time in his international career, having been taken off during his country's opening match after failing to impress.
Manchester City star Toure, the two-time African player of the year, netted his second goal of the tournament in the 88th minute.
Another substitute, Didier Ya Konan (No. 13) sealed the Ivorians' second successive win with the third goal at Royal Bafokeng Stadium.
Striker Gervinho, who plays for English club Arsenal, scored the opening goal in the 21st minute. He also netted a late winner in the opening match against Togo.
Emmanuel Adebayor helped Togo bounce back from that 2-1 defeat as the Sparrowhawks' captain scored in a 2-0 win against Algeria which put the Ivorians into the quarterfinals and eliminated the north Africans with one match still to play.
Malians look at the charred motorcycle used by a suicide bomber before he blew himself up near a group of Malian soldiers on February 8. The act marked the first suicide attack in the embattled west African nation since the start of a French-led offensive to oust the Islamists from Mali's north, where they had controlled key towns for 10 months.
A convoy of French army vehicles head toward Gao on February 7. France is mulling over when to hand off its four-week-old intervention to U.N. peacekeepers.
A man searches through the ruins of a building destroyed by French airstrikes in Douentza, Mali, on Tuesday, February 5. The town was retaken by French and Malian troops in January.
A child holds up a machine gun round found in the ruins of a building destroyed by French airstrikes in Douentza, Mali, on February 5.
A child leads a donkey cart past a destroyed Malian army armored vehicle near Douentza, Mali, on February 5.
Malians welcome France's President Francois Hollande as he arrives in Timbuktu on Saturday, February 2. French-led troops are working to secure the area against Islamist militants.
A man sweeps the red carpet at Mali's Mopti airport on January 2 before the arrival of Hollande and Mali's interim President Dioncounda Traore.
French soldiers patrol next to the Djingareyber mosque, on January 31, in Timbuktu, Mali. The city was recaptured on January 28, by French-led forces in their offensive against Islamist rebels who have been occupying Mali's north since last April.
French air strikes destroyed this vehicle outside the northern Malian city of Gao.
Men play boules, a game that was forbidden under Islamist rule. on January Wednesday, 30, in Gao, Mali. Gao, once a key Islamist stronghold, was retaken on January 26 by French and Malian troops.
A Malian soldier tries to disperse looters in Timbuktu, Mali, on Tuesday, January 29. Malian and French forces have been battling Islamist militants to loosen their grip on the country. France was the colonial power in Mali until 1960.
People cheer along a road in Ansongo, a town near the northern Malian city of Gao, as troops from neighboring Niger enter the city.
A man waves a French flag as residents celebrate the arrival of Niger troops on January 29 in Ansongo.
Niger troops enter Ansongo on January 29.
Malian soldiers enter the historic city of Timbuktu on Monday, January 28.
French soldiers flying back from Timbuktu arrive at the French army base camp in Sevare on January 28.
A man prays in the recently liberated town of Douentza on January 28.
Wounded Malian soldiers rest after receiving medical care at the Polyclinique of Kati on Sunday, January 27.
Malian soldiers wait at a checkpoint near Sevare on January 27.
A French soldier walks through the bush in central Mali on January 27.
Malian soldiers wait at a checkpoint near Sevare on January 27.
A Malian soldier stands amid debris Saturday, January 26, in the key central town of Konna, which has been under French and Malian army control since last week. It was taken on January 11 by Islamist groups.
Malian soldiers walk past the bullet-riddled wall of a house in Konna on Saturday, January 26.
A Malian soldier looks at the wreckage of an Islamist rebel's armed pickup truck in Konna.
Ammunition lies on the ground in Konna.
Malian soldiers escort journalists in Konna.
Malian soldiers patrol a street of Diabaly on January 26.
Ali Ag Noh, right, stands with his family in front of his house on Friday, Janurary 25, in the village of Seribala, Mali, after his cousin and brother-in-law, Aboubakrim Ag Mohamed, and a cattle rancher, Samba Dicko, were shot dead on January 24, allegedly by the Malian Army. According to Noh, Mohamed, a Tuareg, and Dicko were shot in the head in Seribala after being accused by two Malian soldiers of being Islamists or aiding Islamists.
Members of the French army arrive at a base camp in Sevare, Mali, on January 25. French and Malian troops advanced on the key Islamist stronghold of Gao after recapturing the northern town of Hombori as the extremists bombed a strategic bridge to thwart a new front planned in the east.
Malian soldiers ride a motorcycle in a street of Merkala, on Thursday, January 24, 2013 as the first of the 6,000 troops pledged by African nations to support France started heading north.
A Malian soldier armed with a machine gun watches a herd of cattle crossing a bridge over the Niger River on January 24. Mali's military offensive against militants controlling the northern half of the country has gathered pace in the past two weeks, with backing from France and other international allies.
A French army convoy travels near Segou, in south-central Mali, is on its way to Diabaly on January 24.
A woman who fled northern Mali sits at a camp for internally displaced persons in Sevare on Wednesday, January 23. The EU announced 20 million euros of extra humanitarian aid to help Malians fleeing fighting, its second such donation in as many months.
A soldier rides on the back of a scooter outside Diabaly on January 23.
Malians walk past a destroyed truck mounted with a machine gun on Tuesday, January 22. The truck was used by militants and destroyed during airstrikes by the French air force.
Malian soldiers patrol Diabaly on January 22.
Malian soldiers walk past destroyed army barracks as they patrol in Diabaly on January 22, 2013.
A French soldier mans his post on January 22 near the city of Diabaly, Mali.
A French soldier stands guard in front of charred pickups used by Islamist rebels in Diabaly, Mali, on Monday, January 21. The Malian military says it has gained control of the town of Diabaly, a key advance in the battle against Islamist militants in the north.
A Malian soldier walks past a army building that was taken by the jihadists before being destroyed during aerial bombing in Diabaly on January 21.
A Malian soldier searches through debris after aerial bombing in the city of Diabaly on January 21.
A French soldier looks around after arriving in Diabaly on January 21.
French soldiers unload military equipment from an aircraft on January 21.
Malian youths look on as French soldiers drive through Niono on Sunday, January 20.
The French Army conducts operations in Mali on January 20.
A Malian soldier holds a machine gun on top of a jeep on the road back from the town of Mopti, Mali, on Saturday, January 19.
French soldiers of the 5th Combat Helicopter Regiment stand with their equipment in front of a helicopter on January 19 at an airbase near Bamako, Mali. French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on January 19 that France now had 2,000 troops on the ground in Mali as part of a drive against Islamist militants holding the north of the country.
French soldiers of the 5th Combat Helicopter Regiment relax on January 19 at the airbase near Bamako.
A French soldier from the helicopter regiment stands guard at the airbase on January 19.
Malian soldiers check the identity of passengers in a bus coming from Mopti on January 19.
French President Francois Hollande, left, speaks with soldiers who are due to leave for Mali, during a meeting in Tulle, France, on January 19.
Malian soldiers sit in a truck on their way to Niono, Mali, on Friday, January 18.
A Malian child looks out from a bus as Malian army soldiers check vehicles and passengers in the city of Niono on Friday, January 18. Malian troops, with help from France and a U.N.-mandated African force, are fighting al Qaeda-linked Islamist militants.
Malian soldiers man a checkpoint in Niono on January 18.
Togolese troops board a plane to Bamako, Mali, on Thursday, January 17, at the Lome airport in Togo. Troops from West African countries are heading to Mali as part of a U.N.-mandated African force to fight the insurgents.
Helmets belonging to soldiers of the Nigerian army are prepared to be sent to Mali at the Nigerian army peacekeeping center near Kaduna, Nigeria, on January 17.
Malian soldiers stand guard as Mali's President Dioncounda Traore speaks to French troops at an air base in Bamako, Mali, on Wednesday, January 16.
A Malian soldier adjusts his weapon as President Traore speaks to French troops at an air base in Bamako on January 16.
French army soldiers stand on armoured vehicles as they leave Bamako and start their deployment to the north of Mali as part of the Serval operation on Tuesday, January 15.
A French flag is hung on a van in Bamako as French troops start a deployment in the north of Mali on Wednesday.
French troops prepare their Sagaie armoured all terrain vehicles from the Licorne operation based in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, at the 101st military airbase near Bamako on Wednesday.
French troops from the Licorne operation based in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, arrive at the 101st military airbase near Bamako on Wednesday to reinforce the Serval operations, before their deployment in the north of Mali.
Malian police patrol in the capital of Bamako on Sunday, January 13.
Malian police patrol Bamako on Sunday.
A British army Boeing C-17 cargo plane from British Brize Norton base lands Sunday at the Evreux military base in France to take supplies to Bamako.
French soldiers prepare cargo for a British plane en route to Bamako on Sunday at the Evreux military base.
A French armored vehicle rolls onto a British army aircraft to be taken to Bamako on Sunday in Evreux.
Workers adjust chains on a vehicle load in the C-17 in Evreux on Sunday.
Internally displaced Malians from Timbuktu chat at a makeshift cafe in Bamako on Sunday.
French President Francois Hollande, right, speaks with members of Malian associations in France during a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Sunday.
Muslim men protest French military action in Mali outside the French Embassy in central London on Saturday, January 12. About 50 Muslim protesters gathered outside the embassy.
Protesters wave signs outside the French Embassy on Saturday in London.
The interim president of Mali, Dioncounda Traore, speaks after a ministerial Cabinet meeting in Bamako on Friday, January 11. Malian authorities declared a state of emergency throughout the country on Friday as the army launched a counteroffensive against Islamists who were pushing south.
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