Paris Saint-Germain secured a dominant 7-0 victory over Brest on Wednesday, completing a 10-0 aggregate win to set up a mouthwatering clash with either Liverpool or Barcelona in the Champions League last 16.
PSG were always heavy favorites after their 3-0 win in the first leg in Brittany last week, and they made light work of the return fixture at the Parc des Princes, with seven different players getting on the scoresheet.
Bradley Barcola, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Vitinha, Desire Doue, Nuno Mendes, Goncalo Ramos, and Senny Mayulu all found the back of the net.
This 7-0 win marks PSG’s largest ever margin of victory in a European competition, and it’s their first time scoring seven goals in a Champions League match since their 7-1 thrashing of Celtic in November 2017.
Despite scoring just three goals in their first five group-stage matches this season, PSG have now found the net 21 times in their last five Champions League outings, showing a sharp turnaround in form.
The victory came even though Ousmane Dembele, who had netted 18 goals in his previous 12 appearances for PSG, couldn’t add to his tally in this match.
Brest, who made it to the knockout stages of their first-ever European campaign following a historic third-place finish in Ligue 1, were left frustrated.
Having not beaten PSG in 40 years, they’ve now lost 19 of their last 20 meetings with the Parisians.
Brest had a strong start, nearly taking the lead early on with a shot from Mathias Pereira Lage that was cleared off the line by Marquinhos.
However, PSG struck in the 20th minute when Barcola latched onto a ball over the top from Fabian Ruiz, slotting it past goalkeeper Gregoire Coudert for his 16th goal of the season.
Kvaratskhelia doubled the lead just before halftime, scoring his second goal for PSG after a low cross from Joao Neves. Neves came close to scoring himself, smashing a shot against the crossbar in stoppage time.
The second half saw PSG continue to dominate. Vitinha made it 3-0 with a lovely strike from outside the box just before the hour mark, and Ramos showcased some brilliant skill to set up Doue for the fourth.
Mendes added the fifth midway through the second half, tapping in from an assist by Achraf Hakimi.
Ramos made it six with a close-range strike in the 76th minute, and Mayulu capped the scoring with a goal in the 86th minute, after being set up by Kvaratskhelia.
Brest’s Abdallah Sima had a goal ruled out for offside, as PSG ran riot to complete their comprehensive win.
PSG will learn who they face next when the Champions League draw is made on Friday.
