We have waited a while to really see it, but yesterday was a day when Sadio Mane showed exactly why Saints invested so much money in him.

The £10m summer signing from Red Bull Salzburg had his best game for the club by some considerable distance, tearing Crystal Palace apart with greater effectiveness than an over-excited kid at Christmas ripping through their wrapping paper.

Since his move from the Austrian club a few months ago, Mane has struggled to display his true quality, bar some impressive early flashes.

He had been particularly ineffective in the weeks leading up to this game, and it was little surprise when he was dropped for the 3-0 win against Everton last week.

Perhaps the break did him good, as he was a re-energised man at Selhurst Park, and it was probably no fluke that his performance coincided with him being played up front, just off Graziano Pelle.

Like Shane Long the week before, the 3-5-2 formation helped him find his best form, with his pace through the middle proving too much for Palace to handle.

Forget giving the Eagles wings. This was a Red Bull product that clipped them.

Mane had looked a threat early on, and it was no shock to see him burst through the middle on 18 minutes, round Julian Speroni and put Saints in front.

From there on, he and his teammates never looked back.

Mane nearly helped lay on two more goals before half-time, spinning past Mile Jedinak and playing a pass to Pelle, who dummied it, allowing it to reach James Ward-Prowse, who fired over from 18 yards.

Mane then showed excellent vision, slipping a superb pass down the inside-left for Ryan Bertrand, whose cross was eventually nodded over by Ward-Prowse.

Half-time gave Palace the chance to work out a plan of stopping the Senegalese international, but they could not formulate one, and, three minutes after the restart, he spun brilliantly past Joel Ward and delivered a smart low ball that Bertrand finished superbly for 2-0.

After the outstanding Toby Alderweireld made it 3-0, Mane fooled ex-Saint Jason Puncheon with a clever drop of the shoulder, before curling a shot inches over from 20 yards.

It was another fine moment in a fantastic display from the 22-year-old.

The only frustrating aspect is that he has hit form just before heading off to the African Cup of Nations.

Still, a couple more performances like this – against Chelsea, Arsenal and Ipswich – before he goes and he may just help put Saints in incredible shape for the rest of the season.