The win was the Netherlands' biggest since beating San Marino 11-0 in 2011 and put them on a maximum of six points after two games in their FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign.
Oranje opened their qualifying account with a commanding 2-0 win in Finland and quickly got going against Malta, going up 3-0 after 21 minutes. Manager Ronald Koeman was more than happy with his side's performance against the football minnows.
"You can't do better than we did today. From the first to the last minute, we gave it our all and put the pressure on. And we scored some great goals," said Koeman during the post-match press conference.
"It doesn't happen very often anymore that such a big score is achieved. That deserves a big compliment.”
Even with the score at 7-0 in the closing stages, Oranje were eager to add an eighth. Koeman praised his side's energy: "We have more quality than Malta, that's clear. But it only becomes 8-0 if you keep covering ground. And keep up the pressure. That's what we did."
Magical Memphis
The match was lit up by Memphis Depay early on, who tied Robin van Persie's record of 50 goals for the Netherlands with two goals in the first 16 minutes. "It was a great night for him," said Koeman.
The Corinthians striker kept looking for his record-breaking 51st goal in the famous orange jersey, but was subbed off in the 72nd for Aston Villa's Donyell Malen, who scored twice and gave an assist in his 20 minutes of playing time.
Koeman stood behind his decision to take Memphis off before completing his historic hat-trick. "No, why should he have been left out there? Let him score his 51st goal next time and break the record. Then we'll be playing Poland at home. That way, he'll stay hungry."
"Besides, Malen certainly didn't do badly as Memphis’ replacement. He made a good impression."
Poland's 2-1 loss to Finland meant the Netherlands are now just one point behind the Nordic group leaders. Oranje's next game will be on September 4th, when Poland come to visit the Netherlands in a match Koeman calls "perhaps the most important one."
The former Barcelona defender is delighted with his side's perfect start to the World Cup qualifying campaign. "Prior to this qualification, I stated that we are obligated to finish first in the group. We are on track."