Hein Vanhaezebrouck's created history as it beat its Russian opposition and booked a place in the last 16 of the Champions League.
Gent became the first Belgian side to reach the Champions League last 16 since 2000-01 as the club registered a 2-1 victory over Zenit.
Laurent Depoitre and Danijel Milicevic scored the goals to send the home side through in second place in Group H, with Zenit also progressing as the pool winner, 14 years after Anderlecht reached the second phase of the competition.
With Valencia slipping to a home defeat against Lyon, Gent did not even need a point to ensure progression but a dominant first half performance and Milicevic’s late winner helped head coach Hein Vanhaezebrouc's team end Zenit's perfect record in the group stage.