The Scotland international played a pivotal role in four of his team’s five tries to help secure a 45-14 victory for the French side at Franklin’s Gardens on the opening night of the Heineken Champions Cup.
The match was shown on BT Sport, who shared a clip on Twitter of Russell turning on the style, collecting a kick deep in his own half, then leaving several Northampton players trailing in his wake before a sumptuous offload released Wenceslas Lauret for his second try of the night.
Northampton Saints director of rugby Chris Boyd could only the applaud the performance of Russell as he put his team to the sword.
"Finn Russell passed well, kicked well, ran the game well. He’s a quality footballer,” Boyd said.
“When Finn plays behind a pack that gives him front-foot ball he’s an absolute handful.
“When you play someone like Finn Russell, it’s not him you have to get at, it’s the ball he picks up. I enjoy watching Finn play, he’s a quality player.”