It was not just the victory but the manner of it which has impressed the footballing world so.
The media are running out superlatives to describe Pep Guardiola’s men on recent form, while some have opted to take a more metaphorical approach.
For example, Darren Lewis of the Mirror scribed: “City right now are the Terminator of 21st century football — the bigger, badder, more brutal upgrade that just will not stop.
“Up against this fearsome display of firepower, Chelsea looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger from the original Terminator movie — scary once, but now seemingly low-tech by comparison.
“Even without Sergio Aguero and Benjamin Mendy, the visitors were able - easily - to find a way past the parked Chelsea bus.
“Chelsea could not cope with the speed of Raheem Sterling, the skill of Leroy Sane, the power of Kyle Walker, the guile of David Silva.
“The threats came from everywhere.
“Tellingly, despite the success of his title-winning tactics last season, Conte went defensive — trying to contain rather than compete with Guardiola’s Galacticos.
“Just like last September, after Arsenal scored three times in 29 first-half minutes, the Italian was left wondering how on earth he will bring this particular monster to its knees.
“No statement … has been bigger so far than Saturday’s at the Bridge.
“This season, City have beaten Liverpool 5-0, Feyenoord 0-4, Watford 0-6 and Crystal Palace 5-0.
“This result topped the lot.
“To go to the home of the champions and answer all of the questions about their supposed leaky defence, the impact of losing two key players and whether Guardiola’s idealism could really triumph under the microscope? Brilliant.”
Writing for the Daily Mail, Jamie Redknapp echoed the sentiments, declaring City ‘frightening’ and insisting the Blues ‘have the edge’ in the title race.
He reflected: “Manchester City have laid down a huge marker in the title race. They went to the home of the champions and took them back to school.
“It was one of the most one-sided displays I have seen from an away team in the Premier League against top-four rivals.
“With the young, hungry trio of Gabriel Jesus, Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling in the front three, City pressed Chelsea from the front with such energy that they could not get out of their half.
“With Guardiola and Jose Mourinho in such good form, it is little surprise that this season is shaping up to be a battle between the Manchester powerhouses for the title.
“The way Guardiola’s men dismantled Antonio Conte’s side was frightening.
“That outstanding quality gives City the edge.”
Meanwhile, ESPN dubbed the Blues’ display ‘the performance of the weekend.’
Wrote Iain Macintosh: “They’ve had bigger margins of victory this season, but in terms of an all-round performance, they haven’t played better than this in years.
“At the home of the champions, they boldly took the game to Chelsea, flooding the midfield and pushing Antonio Conte’s side back on their heels.
“Fabian Delph’s display as an inverted left-back was as impressive as it was surprising and as for Kevin de Bruyne? Well, Chelsea will rue the day they let him go.
“We wanted to see how City would fare in their first proper test. It looks like they passed.”
Matchwinner De Bruyne believes the victory will prove to be a ‘six-pointer’ in the title race.
He told press: “Last year I think we had big games where I think we didn’t do particularly badly, but we had no points to show for it.
“These are the most important games. It’s just three points, but to win these ones, it’s six points in the end.
“You can win all the big games and then lose all the small ones. You need to try to be constant.
“Obviously in the end of the season when the gap is minimal and you win these big games, it means a lot. I think it’s just nice to get the winning feeling and stay in the same rhythm.”
