Paris Saint-Germain coach Unai Emery was delighted some of his younger and lesser-used players were able to lead the defending champions in the quarterfinals of the Coupe de la Ligue with a 3-1 win over Lille OSC on Wednesday.
The Spaniard made a number of changes to his starting XI but Les Parisiens still had too much for Les Dogues and completed a convincing win thanks to a Lucas Moura double and a Jese Rodriguez goal.
Speaking with journalists after the final whistle, Emery acknowledged the Brazilian's first half penalty "relieved the players" and restored some confidence after three matches without a win across all competitions.
"Victories bring joy and trust to the team," the Basque tactician added. "Lille had started the match well. On our side, we needed a bit of peace and quiet.
"I am relieved because the team grew in strength as the game progressed and the youngsters, as well as those who have not had as much game time as others, seized the opportunity.
"In the next round, we have Metz at home. It is good that we will play in front of our fans again. This competition is one of our objectives."
Maxwell, who captained the side in the absence of regular skipper Thiago Silva, shared his boss' sentiments and admitted "this win will do us the world of good."
"We are happy to continue in this competition and now we want to build on this result," the veteran Brazilian said. "Giving everything in every match is important, regardless of the competitions.
"We must have the same requirement every time. The season still has a long way to go and we will try to win as many games as we can."
Right back Thomas Meunier was also relieved to have returned to winning form and praised young midfielder Christopher Nkunku's mature showing.
"We are happy to have returned to winning ways and to have qualified for the next round," said Meunier. "That was our objective. Christopher was superb in the second half. Everyone knows that the youth academy produces quality players and we saw further evidence this evening."
Nkunku himself was pleased with his display but disappointed his powerful second half shot from distance cannoned back off the crossbar instead of going in.
"It was a good evening as we qualified for the quarterfinals in the end, so we are pleased because of that," the 19-year-old revealed. "The team grew in strength as the match progressed and everybody put in effort that eventually paid dividends.
"I thought I had scored when my shot hit the crossbar! I hope I will soon score my first [senior] goal."