The combined cost of the two starting line-ups was a little shy of £1billion, so on paper this was not just a title showdown but a billion pound game: the ultimate manifestation of Premier League spending power.
On grass, it was something entirely different. One of the most lavishly assembled non-events imaginable, in which Chelsea, needing to throw the sink at Manchester City at a point of title jeopardy, were equipped with neither a gameplan nor even the right personnel.
Chelsea’s best player, Mason Mount, was on the bench until the 81st minute.