Manchester United were put in their place and Manchester City are now one step away from heights only their FA Cup final opponents have reached before.
The Treble is 90 minutes from being seen again in English football after Pep Guardiola's side overcame their frustrations over refereeing calls to show once again that they are the better side in Manchester. Two delicious goals from Ilkay Gundogan - prime Zidane in these months as his teammates have jokingly referred to him as - took him to six from his last six starts and earned City the FA Cup trophy that their play deserved.
His first, after just 12 seconds, showed City's improvement from when the teams last met. Then, Luke Shaw commented on how they had noticed how slowly their opponents started but here it was United asleep as Casemiro and Victor Lindelof both missed headers before Gundogan put his laces through De Bruyne's bobbling header to send the ball crashing past a hapless David de Gea.
Also read: Man City player ratings as Ilkay Gundogan world class
Nobody could quite believe it, a goal 13 seconds quicker than the previous fastest in an FA Cup final with City fans having only just turned around to face the action after an audacious pre-match Poznan. They had plenty to be happy about in the opening half an hour as the team was so dominant it looked like the next record was worth keeping an eye out for as much as the next goal.
From nowhere, a United penalty arrived. Not even Aaron Wan-Bissaka had appealed for one after his header brushed Jack Grealish's hand on the way into the box and Paul Tierney certainly didn't think so but, minutes later, the VAR, David Coote, advised Tierney to go to the screen.
Anyone familiar with VAR would suggest there was only one way this was going to go but it is still worth pointing out that Tierney viewed the footage that showed Grealish completely unaware as the ball hit his hand at point-blank range, and decided it worthy of a spot-kick. Even if the law is an ass, it was still a rubbish call from the referee after having the luxury of replays.
Bruno Fernandes coolly rolled it past Stefan Ortega and the FA Cup final was a contest again. City had reacted badly at Old Trafford in January when United scored an even more contentious goal, conceding again quickly to lose the game and the pressure was on them here to show how much progress had really been made.
With fans online already seething at a Casemiro stamp on Manu Akanji somehow resulting in a United free-kick rather than dismissal, the team saw red again when Kevin De Bruyne burst in front of Fred in the box and was blocked from getting the ball; it would have been soft, but not as much as the one that had just gone against them. Bernardo Silva was booked for scything down Luke Shaw and Kyle Walker nearly dropped his team in it when he tried to whack the ball as hard as he could at Fred but saw it balloon into the box.
The interval brought some much-needed calm and, roared on by their own supporters that they were now kicking towards, City reset. De Bruyne started to cause trouble down that right flank after being central for the first 45 minutes and was far too clever for Fred as he turned away to win a free-kick.
Picking himself up, his chip took ages to come down but no United player managed to stop it before Gundogan met it on the volley to bounce it past De Gea from the edge of the box. Yet again, City had scored early in the half to take the advantage.
Much will be made again of how important Gundogan is to City and why it is madness that City have not yet made him an offer that he cannot refuse. Guardiola has told the board that he should, yet there is no resolution heading into the last game of his contract.
As sensible as it may seem to extend his contract, it says a lot about the existing gulf between these teams that a player City aren't sure about keeping for next season scored two goals past a player who was culpable for letting both goals in but will probably get a contract extension. For all the noise around United beating City in January, the Blues are still streets ahead of their rivals in almost every department.
Having beaten Arsenal and Chelsea en route to the FA Cup final, nobody could say City had it easy up against a United side desperate to protect their history and at half-time it looked as though City would have a real battle on their hands to win the game and keep their Treble hopes alive. Class always wins out in the end, though.
That is why Jose Mourinho's Carabao Cup win in 2016 is the only significant defeat United have inflicted upon City during Guardiola's seven years in English football. And it is why, while United pat themselves on the back for finishing in the top four and winning the League Cup, Guardiola and his City players are gearing up to emulate something only the greatest United team have ever done in the history of English football.
City have left United and everyone else behind in their pursuit of excellence, and that does not look like changing any time soon.
As one team goes off on their holidays, the other sets out to make history.
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