Liverpool secured a narrow 1-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain thanks to substitute Harvey Elliott scoring late on despite 87 minutes of pressure from the Ligue 1 champions.
The way Arne Sloth's side handled the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie bears close scrutiny, but it all came down to sheer willpower, an outstanding performance from goalkeeper Alisson Becker and the ability to take advantage of a chance when it finally came.
Without the Brazilian's man of the match, Liverpool's dreams of a seventh European Cup might have been dashed, but he kept them in the game long enough for Elliott to curl a corner past Gianluigi Donnarumma with virtually his first touch, a minute after replacing the composed Mohamed Salah.
Alisson faced 27 shots and saved 10 of them, sometimes being the only one standing in the way of the complete destruction of absolutely dominant opponents.
Slot admits his Champions League experience is limited, especially compared to his PSG counterpart and former Barcelona coach Luis Enrique, but he was a goldmine when it came to substitutions, with fellow substitute Darwin Nunez providing an assist on the counter-attack.
The fact that it was their only shot on target underlined how difficult it was for them to break out of their final third, let alone at half-time when PSG's pressure was overwhelming.
The hosts, long the butt of ridicule for their expensive but so far fruitless pursuit of Champions League glory, proved they are a force to be reckoned with after last season's semi-final exit.
David Beckham, back at one of his former clubs, watched the pre-match laser show and pyrotechnics make for a highlight, with the team's play matching the high six-man press that made it difficult for Liverpool to break out of defence.
Ousmane Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, two of PSG's front three, were given free rein and left the Liverpool defence chasing shadows with a superb display of fluid movement and attacking intent.
Starting in midfield, Dembele drifted to the right and produced a devastating 15 minutes, first darting past Andy Robertson and Alexis Mac Allister before Joao Neves' shot bounced off the crossbar.
Dembele fired in but the ball was saved after he beat Mac Allister again from the flank before Kvaratskhelia thought he had made the breakthrough on 20 minutes.
Receiving the ball on the right side of the penalty area after a partially cleared corner, he used his left foot and curled the ball into the far post, but VAR ruled it offside.
The misery didn't end there, with VAR coming to Liverpool's rescue again when Ibrahima Konate was shown a red card for a shoulder charge on Bradley Barcola after Italian referee Davide Massa had signalled play to continue.
Then came the most chaotic period, with Konate bizarrely leaving his position, leaving Dembele one-on-one with Alisson.
The goalkeeper blocked the shot but was out of position and Dominik Szoboszlai saved Barcola's first rebound before the winger missed the second.
Kvaratskhelia, who had earlier completely taken Alisson out of the game with a long-range strike, then linked up with Trent Alexander-Arnold on the PSG left before cutting forward again to test the Liverpool goalkeeper.
Sloth's side held on for dear life and almost snatched an undeserved goal in first-half stoppage time when Mac Allister's corner was sent to the far post, where Salah was unable to get his hands on the falling ball.
The break provided only a brief respite from the pressure as Alisson saved Kvaratskhelia's free-kick.
The pressure seemed to be driving the rivals together
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