Dimitri Payet said he could scarcely believe it as he struck a late winner to give France a 2-1 win in their European Championship opener against Romania on Friday.
The West Ham playmaker sweetly struck the ball from the top of the box into the top corner in the 89th minute to secure three points for the hosts.
And moments later he seemed to be fighting off tears of pride as he as he was substituted in stoppage time.
"If someone had told me that it was going to be like that tonight I don't think I would have believed it," he said after the game.
France had taken the lead early in the second half through Olivier Giroud's header -- set up by Payet's cross -- but Romania equalised from the penalty spot and it looked like it would finish level before Payet's heroics.
Payet admitted France found it difficult to break down Romania's defence.
"Yes, we were a bit timid and afraid of making mistakes in the opening quarter," Payet said. "We came up against a side who were very good at defending."
And the midfielder said the manner of the win would serve as a warning for France moving forward.
"The crowd helped -- we know how important the points were," he said. "Now we're able to rest up and prepare for the second game. Had we won by two or three goals that might have misled us slightly.
The fact we won like that shows there won't be any easy matches and we have to go out and win matches."
France coach Didier Deschamps said his side struggled to relax after the tournament's opening ceremony.
"It's good to have won. The Romania team aren't easy to play against -- and we knew that," he said. "We had chances, but we conceded a few as well.
"We had a bit of trouble letting our hair down, but we got our reward in the end. I made sure we played to win, with four attacking players on the pitch at the end. Given the context, an opening match is never easy."
Deschamps also urged promising young star Paul Pogba to play up to his potential after removing him in the 77th minute.
"I'm not going to be too hard on him, but clearly his potential is such that he can contribute more than he showed tonight,'' Deschamps said.
But despite France showing some vulnerabilities throughout the team, Deschamps hailed Payet for lifting Les Bleus to the victory.
"If you can put the ball into the corner of the net like that it's easy," the coach said. "It solves a lot of problems."