Toulouse coach Jean Baptiste Elissalde has admitted his side were taught a lesson at Kingsholm on Friday night but is relieved to see his side through to the last eight for a record 14th time.
The former Heineken Cup Champions arrived in England knowing a victory would send them through to the quarter-finals but in a stunning free flowing game Gloucester edged Toulouse 34-24.
Harlequins' defeat in Galway though meant Toulouse remained at the helm of Pool 6 to the delight of Elissalde.
"It's a big relief to still qualify," he said.
"Connacht saved us which is incredible.
"We got taught a lesson in rugby tonight and Gloucester were better than us on a lot of aspects.
"We missed a lot of tackles and the statistics will look terrible.
"Its not usual to score so many points and lose and feel like you have been dominated.
"We are just happy to go through and its reward for the work we did at the start of the tournament."
