Hope and miracles: Afcon's unlikely semi-finalists carry weight of history

A tournament of extraordinary drama has thrown up two semi-finals that each match one of the continent's current giants against a team that has distant memories of glory. Neither South Africa nor Democratic Republic of the Congo arrived at the Africa Cup of Nations with especially elevated hopes but on Wednesday they face Nigeria and the hosts Ivory Coast respectively for a place in the final. Ivory Coast, whose golden generation spent so long narrowly missing out on the trophy, are, like their opponents, looking to win the tournament for the third time. The difference is that it is 50…