It was the day after Christmas and Manchester City gave their fans a late present in the final home game of 2021.
A ruthless first-half display saw City head into half-time four goals to the good, Leicester simply unable to live with the never-ending waves of sky blue attacks.
Things got a bit less comfortable after the interval when a spirited Foxes fightback threatened to spoil the festivities, but in the end Pep Guardiola's side were able to add a couple more goals to win 6-3.
Raheem Sterling was named man of the match, but fellow wide man Riyad Mahrez played no small part in the result that put City six points clear at the top of the Premier League table.
The Algerian winger repeatedly linked up with Bernardo Silva and Joao Cancelo to bamboozle the left side of Leicester's defence, and was on hand to double City's lead early on with an emphatic penalty.
Mahrez later assisted Aymeric Laporte's headed goal with a well-delivered corner, and finished his day with two key passes, two successful dribbles and four accurate crosses. Not a bad day at the office, eh?
However, his contribution against a team that has often caused City trouble in the past was not the only Mahrez news that pleased Guardiola and City fans alike.
On Boxing day Mahrez was included in Algeria's squad for the upcoming African Cup of Nations, as was widely expected. Mahrez' involvement in the tournament, which runs from January 9 to February 6, would ordinarily have seen him join up with his countrymen on Monday December 27, ruling him out of a host of City games including fixtures against Chelsea and Arsenal.
But on Boxing Day morning, the Confederation of African Football announced that it had accepted a request from domestic leagues around the world to be able to delay the release of players for the tournament until January 3, 2022.
That means that Mahrez, Algeria's captain and best player, will now be available for City's trips to Brentford and Arsenal over the next five days.
While City's title rivals Liverpool and Chelsea will also benefit from the decision, the news could not have come at a better time for the Blues.
With a six point gap opened up on Liverpool, the last thing City want to do is slip up in the coming games and lose the initiative. If they want to kick on and take advantage of Liverpool and Chelsea's recent struggles, then being able to call upon one of their most in-form attackers is handy.
With 12 goals Mahrez is City's top goal-scorer so far this season, and against Brentford and Arsenal his presence could prove crucial.
Brentford have had a fruitful start to life in the Premier League following promotion last season, and have proved difficult to break down at home in particular.
Arsenal, coached by Guardiola's former protégé Mikel Arteta, have enjoyed a resurgence of late after a difficult start to the season, and are sure to put up more of a fight than when they visited the Etihad Stadium back in August.
Of course, City have an embarrassment of attacking talents to call upon, and Guardiola will still have to make do without Mahrez for much of January, the visit of Chelsea included.
But titles are won by the finest of margins. The availability of a player who has now scored and assisted in three consecutive league games could be just that.
Will Mahrez' delayed absence help City in the title race? Follow our City Is Ours writer Alex Brotherton on Twitter to get involved in the discussion and give us your thoughts in the comments section below.
