London (AFP) - Paris Saint-Germain coach Laurent Blanc declared that his team had "joined the big boys" after their potentially transformative victory over Chelsea in the Champions League last 16.
Silva's looping header, six minutes from the end of extra time, made the score 2-2 on the night and 3-3 on aggregate, taking PSG through on away goals, 11 months after they had lost to Chelsea by the same rule in the quarter-finals following another 3-3 draw.PSG overcame daunting odds at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, losing Zlatan Ibrahimovic to a contentious first-half red card and twice falling behind, only to draw level on each occasion through centre-backs David Luiz, the former Chelsea player, and captain Thiago Silva.
"PSG really want to join the big boys and I think we did that tonight (Wednesday). I think the match will be a reference for the club for years to come," Blanc said.
"I know things go quickly. We'll try to appreciate this victory, this qualification. Then there'll be the draw for the quarter-finals and the pressure.
"We won't forget what we've done here. We did something good, but we didn't do something exceptional. We're in the quarter-finals, so we've done something, but you have to keep things in perspective."
