Manchester City's brutal Champions League demolition of holders Real Madrid confirmed Pep Guardiola's side are truly something special.
Guardiola has managed some magnificent sides in his glittering managerial career, including Treble-winners Barcelona, led by world-beater Lionel Messi.
Bayern Munich won three Bundesliga titles under Guardiola, although they never made it past the Champions League semi-finals under the Catalan. But City under Guardiola are shaping up to be his greatest side, one on the cusp of becoming only the second English side to win a historic Treble.
Manchester United achieved that feat in 1999 and, while it is dangerous to compare sides from different eras, City could go on to dominate both domestically and in Europe for years to come.
Against that backdrop, why would any player want to leave City? Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva, both of whom stepped up in recent weeks to drag City closer to the Treble, could both be on their way this summer.
Gundogan is out of contract this summer and wants more than City's offer of another year, while Bernardo is keen to leave for Spain, for lifestyle reasons. But with City so dominant at home and abroad, both may ultimately be persuaded to stay, to help continue the club's frightening dominance.
While they have yet to win the Champions League, the manner of City's 4-0 mauling of 14-time winners Real underlined why they are overwhelming favourites to beat Inter Milan in the final on June 10 in Istanbul.
It took until the 25th minute for Real to complete a pass in City's half on Wednesday, such was the overwhelming superiority of Guardiola's majestic side against the greatest club side in Europe.
The showdown with Inter could be the final leg of the Treble, with City able to wrap up a third straight Premier League title this weekend, before facing United in the FA Cup final at Wembley on June 3.
Although City are three wins away from football immortality, Guardiola has warned his players not to get ahead of themselves, insisting their humility is what has brought them sustained success under him.
“This team has one incredible detail,” said Guardiola. “They are so humble. Every player, it doesn’t matter the competition, they take it seriously, because they're so humble. I hate arrogance in sport and I hate it when you're something you're not.
“If you believe you are something special, then you're not. I said to the players 'you only do better because sometimes you kick the ball better than the opponents'. That doesn’t make you special at all. But it's so difficult, in modern football, to do what these guys have done and they play with such desire.”
There is, of course, a caveat when it comes to City's success, namely the 115 charges of breaking the Premier League's financial fair play rules over a nine-year period.
Three years ago City were banned from Europe for two seasons by UEFA and fined £26.8million for similar breaches. The ban was overturned and the fine was reduced to £8.9m after City took the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
But the Premier League charges have once again pointed the finger of suspicion at City, although it could be some years before there is a resolution to that investigation. Until then, the football world can only marvel at the breathtaking style played by City, who are on the brink of a fifth league title in six seasons and are firm favourites to finally rule Europe.
Guardiola's side are unbeaten in their last 23 games in all competitions, winning 19 of them. No-one can live with them currently, as frazzled title rivals Arsenal and battered European giants Real can testify. City are on the brink of something truly remarkable and the most frightening aspect for their rivals is that this could be just the beginning.
