Paris St Germain captain Thiago Silva admits he was scared that qualification to the last 16 of the Champions League was out of reach.
PSG secured their progress to the knockout stages as Group C winners following a 4-1 victory at Red Star Belgrade.
The Ligue 1 side were 2-0 up at half-time thanks to Edinson Cavani’s early finish and a fine goal from the fit-again Neymar, both of which were set up by Kylian Mbappe.
Red Star then reduced the deficit through Marko Gobeljic’s 56th-minute volley, before Marquinhos scored a header in the 74th minute and Mbappe, teed up by Neymar, slotted in PSG’s fourth in stoppage time.
Thiago told L’Equipe: “The goal is achieved. I was a little scared this year that we do not go to the round of 16 because it was difficult. But in the difficulty, there are positive things.
“I’m happy with the last matches. I think mentally, since Naples, I have changed a lot. The draw in Naples was my fault. For the Liverpool game, I pushed the players a lot because I felt they needed them.
“If we had conceded a draw against Liverpool, we were almost eliminated. But we managed to win against a team that can still be a finalist this season.”
The Brazilian hailed the performance against Red Star and hopes to take the positives from the match forward to the rest of the season.
“Today was a little easier but when Belgrade scored, we stayed calm, patient,” he added.
“I feel we played more like a team. I hope we will continue like this until the end of the season.”
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