Working as co-commentator for this afternoon's Manchester derby, United legend Gary Neville was probably at his happiest reflecting on the build-up to City's third and decisive goal.
A 44-pass move that allowed Ilkay Gundogan in to finish off the game in City's favour, a general malaise hung over a performance from Jose Mourinho's men that offered little or nothing to the tie as a whole.
Although Martin Tyler's 'artists vs artisans' remark was just that bit too far down the regrettable avenue of needless hyperbole, Manchester City were for the vast majority of today's game, a class apart.
Whether or not it results in Pep Guardiola's side retaining their Premier League crown remains to be seen. However, Neville is certain that today's opponents can have no serious designs on such an outcome in the near future.
Breaking it down in his own concise manner, Gary Neville surveyed just how far United had fallen since the heady days of Alex Ferguson.
"It's sobering to say, but we shouldn't compare Manchester United to Manchester City actually," Neville claimed.
"In terms of watching them at this moment in time, [there is an] absolute gulf between the two teams in terms of performance levels."
Arguing that the 12-point gap between both sides is "about right, at this moment in time, after 12 games," Neville reasoned that United's main problem now is not Manchester City, but finding a route into the Premier League's top 4, and, by proxy, into next season's Champions League.
Identifying issues in Manchester United's defence, midfield and attack, Gary Neville isn't necessarily that confident that even this can be achieved.
