In the end, it was all quite straightforward as Arne Slot's merciless Liverpool drenched Manchester City in the rain at the Etihad Stadium to clinch one hand on the Premier League crown.
When Mohamed Salah scored for Liverpool with a fantastic corner kick maneuver, it was as good as guaranteed that they would be 11 points ahead in the title race.
When Salah set up Dominik Szoboszlai to score Liverpool's second goal at the end of halftime, the game was done.
Liverpool did not really get anyone else going for the rest of the game, but as they have done all season, they kept a tight grip on the game, handling City's possession with relative ease.
Slot's team have scored a league-high 64 goals but are not the free-scoring outfit that won title in 2019/20 under charismatic German boss Jurgen Klopp.
Dutchman Slot does not seem bothered about style points; he is happy to just focus on scoring points effectively.
His players enjoyed just 34% possession at City on Sunday, however, and that illustrated just how solid Liverpool's backline was. It also confirmed that Wednesday's exciting 2-2 draw in an open-ended game at Aston Villa was the exception more than the rule.
"Three days ago, we lost at Villa, and everybody was saying we were struggling. Then three days later, we defeated them and suddenly everything changed again," Slot told Sky Sports.
"Ideally, we possess the ball more than them. But City, as far as the ball possession goes, they simply love it so much and are so comfortable on the ball.".
"Defense is the only way you're going to be able to win here. I don't think they had a lot of big chances. It's a bit easier for us to not get ahead of ourselves because we know what we have to do. This was a defensive result more than it was an offensive result."
Liverpool would have to perform very poorly for Arsenal to become a part of the title race, and the ecstatic fans who traveled were already celebrating as if a 20th English title had been won when the whistle was blown.
But Slot is not presupposing anything.
"This advantage would be comfortable in other leagues, but in this league, every game has many challenges," the former Feyenoord coach told interviewers.
"The supporters can sing what they wish. I believe they have sung it long enough now, but as a team, we understand how hard we must labor to achieve each victory."
Liverpool are 20 points ahead of a City team who started the season as favourites to win a fifth consecutive title. "What I do know is that nobody had us as a title contender when we started at the beginning of the season," Slot said. "I believe no one in the football world would have expected City not to be so close to the to the one who is topping the league, if they are not topping the league."