Leicester City got their 2015-16 Premier League campaign to the perfect start as they cruised to a 4-2 win against Sunderland at the King Power Stadium.
Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez shared three goals between them before half time to leave the Black Cats reeling.
Despite Jermain Defoe and Steven Fletcher's second-half replies, Marc Albrighton's 66th-minute strike confirmed a comprehensive victory for the hosts.
The result sees the Foxes soar to the top of the nascent Premier League table, with the Black Cats at the bottom.
Sports Mole looks over the game to find out how the teams did and if the final result was merited.
Match statistics
LEICESTER CITY
Shots: 19
On target: 8
Possession: 44%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 13
SUNDERLAND
Shots: 10
On target: 5
Possession: 56%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 17
Was the result fair?
Without a doubt. Sunderland were simply blown apart in the opening 45 minutes as the hosts ran riot, making the most of an exposed right flank and a lacklustre Black Cats backline.
Following an awry free kick attempt straight off the training ground, the Foxes were given a second chance minutes later, and they didn't disappoint again as Albrighton's set piece was met wonderfully by Vardy's header.
The second came through another nod into the goal, this time through Mahrez soaring high above a Sunderland defence that didn't appear fully switched on, and the third was a penalty following a sloppy Lee Cattermole foul in the box.
The visiting skipper was hauled off on the half-hour mark, but Dick Advocaat's charges didn't really click until the second half, when they countered efficiently through Defoe - and that was after surviving a virtual siege at the other end.
Credit has to be given to Sunderland for giving it a real go in the second half and making the scoreline respectable, but frankly they will need to regroup and quickly, especially in defence.
Leicester's performance
In the first half the Foxes were incisive, opportunist and composed, and they fully deserved their three-goal half-time lead, though in all fairness it could have been more.
The second half was somewhat lacklustre as they were caught out on the counter for Sunderland's first goal and were left exposed for their second, but they were effectively gifted their fourth when Younes Kaboul sloppily gave the ball away to Jeffrey Schlupp in a dangerous position, which led to Albrighton's close-range goal.
They, like today's opponents, will need to improve their defence and acknowledge that other sides will not be so generous at the back.
Sunderland's performance
One wonders if Advocaat wishes that he called it quits at the end of last season after doing his job of keeping Sunderland up, because based on this performance, the Black Cats need major surgery to stand a chance of surviving again.
Leicester at the King Power were always going to be a tough proposition given their amazing form at the end of last season, not to mention the euphoria of their Great Escape, but the Wearsiders didn't exactly help themselves - giving a way a penalty, clearing the ball straight to a forward on the edge of the box, and just being asleep at the back.
Leicester had a few slip-ups in the second half, which allowed a somewhat regrouped and more incisive Sunderland to nab two goals back, but really, unless there is immediate improvement, Sunderland could very well return to the dark days of the mid-noughties where they embarrassed themselves on the way to Premier League relegation.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Riyad Mahrez: A stunning performance from the Algerian international that will probably lead to a glut of scouts checking out the KP in the next few weeks. He was a demon on the wing, always looking to take on defenders and usually coming off best. His well-taken header doubled his side's lead before adding a third from the spot, a cool and composed finish. Could have and should have had a hat-trick.
Biggest gaffe
There were quite a few so we are going to go with Cattermole's clumsy, needless tackle on Mahrez in the 24th minute that led to Leicester winning a penalty and notching up a moral-crushing third goal after not even half an hour played. That he was hauled off by Advocaat on the half-hour mark is testament to an awful day at the office.
Referee performance
In this kind of free-scoring game, referees usually fall into one of two categories: either they were completely anonymous, or they made so many mistakes that it led to several goals for one or both sides.
However, Lee Mason's performance was neither. He made a couple of mistakes, including failing to give Jack Rodwell a second booking for his challenge on Shinji Okazaki 80 minutes in, turning down a penalty appeal against Wes Morgan for an apparent handball in the box and letting Costel Pantilimon off after he seemingly handled outside the box, but none of those would have had a bearing on the game in the end.
What next?
Leicester: The Foxes travel to West Ham United in the league next Saturday.
Sunderland: The Black Cats host promoted Norwich City in the league next Saturday.
Giuseppe Labellarte
