A second-half Kevin De Bruyne strike earned Manchester City a hard-fought 1-0 win against Chelsea on Saturday afternoon, a result that opened up a mammoth 13-point gap between the defending Premier League champions and the chasing pack.
As has been the case many times before, Pep Guardiola's side did not let the high-stakes occasion get to them as Guardiola tweaked his team's game strategy to cope with Chelsea's threat on the transition.
The result was a slightly less controlling but more vertical City who themselves scored by capitalising on a transition following a turnover in possession.
Aside from City again showing that they are the best and most versatile team in the world, there was plenty more to enjoy from a sunny afternoon at the Etihad. Here's the podium...
Gold - Kevin De Bruyne
De Bruyne couldn't have picked a better opponent against which to complete his return to top form.
The man-of-the-match winner was at his dynamic and incisive best, with his match-winning goal - a curling shot at the end of a surging run - encapsulating everything that we have come to love about him over the years.
The Belgian no doubt benefitted from Guardiola opting to try and capitalise on transitions rather than patient ball retention, as it afforded him the freedom to charge forward from his number eight position.
What was most impressive about De Bruyne's performance was what he has overcome to get to this point. After suffering a freak facial injury in the Champions League final, he injured his ankle at Euro 2020, and when he finally looked to be recovered from that he contracted Covid-19, which he is still feeling the effects of.
As a result, De Bruyne's performances this season have been inconsistent, but to Guardiola's delight he is nearing the level everyone knows he can reach.
"Since day one, we were together - all we have won, what we have done, we have done together," Guardiola said of his Belgian ace after the game.
"I want to push him to do it more and more because he is a world-class player with the humility to do everything for the team and it is not easy to find that."
Silver - Raheem Sterling
If it wasn't for De Bruyne's superb goal, Raheem Sterling would surely have been a shoo-in for man of the match.
The England winger was at his tenacious and thrilling best against a suspect Chelsea defence, with left wing-back Marcos Alonso enduring a torrid first-half against Sterling's mazy runs and worker bee-like movement.
Sterling played the majority of the contest out on the right wing, the side of the pitch he has occupied much less frequently during his time at City.
Playing on his natural side allowed him to stretch the Chelsea backline by making darting runs to the byline, something he doesn't do so much when cutting in from the left.
It made for an exciting performance, the latest in a two-month spell that has seen Sterling rediscover his form and pull back from the brink of leaving the club.
Bronze - Chelsea deflation
As Chelsea's supporters so kindly reminded City fans at various points during the game, the London club beat City in last season's Champions League final.
The travelling contingent even brought inflatable Champions League trophy balloons with them, waving them around like children teasing their friends in the playground.
It seemed fitting that after Thomas Tuchel's team had put in another flat performance that saw their title challenge critically punctured, said balloons lay deflated and discarded outside the Etihad Stadium.
Not to worry Chelsea, there's always next year...
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