Avram Grant has praised his Ghana team for their clinical display at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations that has seen them reach the final despite being branded as a failed team before the start of the tournament in Equatorial Guinea.
The Black Stars coach hailed the mental toughness of his players revealing that he told his players to answer their critics with their performance on the pitch.
The four-time champions were condemned by some of their own fans before the tournament as a failed side following incidents at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Ghana, who are perennial favourites for previous competitions, were not considered among the title contenders with Algeria, Cameroon and Ivory Coast tipped among the best sides for the competition.
But the Black Stars defied the predictions on Thursday and secured a place in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations, with Jordan Ayew, Mubarak Wakaso and Andre Ayew on target in a dominant 3-0 victory against the host nation Equatorial Guinea.
"I don't think anybody counted on us before the tournament, nobody thought that we would do something good," the former Chelsea manager Avram Grant said.
"Everyone was picking the Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Algeria or others but I said to the players that it doesn't matter what people say. It matters what we do on the pitch.
"I think from Ghana you've seen good quality of football, a lot of character - you can see this is a team for the present and for the future."
Ghana will play Ivory Coast in the final in Bata on Sunday.