Nothing seems to be going Manchester City‘s way at the moment – and star striker Erling Haaland is not a happy man. If there was any player currently in the Premier League you would hand the ball to for a penalty to win a match, it would be the prolific Norwegian. Not on this occasion, though.
Looking to land a knockout blow, Haaland saw his second-half strike saved by spot-kick expert Jordan Pickford. Manchester City’s crisis continued with a 1-1 draw against Everton at Etihad Stadium on 2024 Boxing Day.
Lineups
Manchester City started with Stefan Ortega in goal, Manuel Akanji, Josko Gvardiol, and Aymeric Laporte in defence, with Jeremy Doku, Mateo Kovacic, and Bernardo Silva in midfield, and Savinho, Phil Foden, and Erling Haaland up front.
Everton lined up with Jordan Pickford in goal, Jarrad Branthwaite, Ashley Young, and Vitalii Mykolenko in defence, with Idrissa Gueye, Abdoulaye Doucoure, and Orel Mangala in midfield, and Iliman Ndiaye and Dominic Calvert-Lewin up front.
How the Match Unfolded
The match began with City dominating possession and creating several scoring opportunities. They took the lead in the 14th minute when Bernardo Silva claimed a deflected opener after sliding in to meet Jeremy Doku’s through-ball.
The angle to goal was tight, but the Portuguese’s connection was firm and took a ricochet off Jarrad Branthwaite to loop beyond Pickford. After a couple of half-chances, Everton was not dispirited and served a warning when Orel Mangala fired just over from a Ndiaye lay-off.
City almost doubled their lead when Phil Foden played in Silva with a fine pass. Still, he missed the target, attempting to bend a spectacular effort into the top corner with the outside of his boot.
City’s frustration at that miss grew when Everton grabbed an equaliser from another quick counter-raid in the 36th minute. Manuel Akanji missed the chance to clear Abdoulaye Doucoure’s cross and Ndiaye was left in space to take and lash a half-volley into the roof of the net.
Post-Match Analysis
City’s all-conquering side have suffered a remarkable drop-off and won just once in their last 13 games in all competitions. The team’s injury list, which includes key players such as Rodri, Ederson, and Ruben Dias, has been a major factor in their poor form.
Haaland’s penalty miss was also a significant moment in the match, and it raised questions about the striker’s confidence and form. City’s inability to break down Everton’s defence has also been a concern, and the team will need to improve their attacking play if they are to turn their season around.
Haaland made a blistering start to the campaign, looking to be on his way to setting more goalscoring records when netting 10 goals in his first five games, but has only managed three in 13 since. This has largely been down to underperformance on his expected goal rate, with statistics showing he has scored five fewer goals than he should have done during this recent run.
What the Coaches Said
“How do you react mentally?” asked boss Pep Guardiola about the penalty miss. “Life is not easy. Sport is not easy. When it happens, it is OK. There are still a lot of minutes to play and we had the chances afterwards. We created, incredible how they ran and fight. In some games it was not good but today well played.“
▶️ Sean Dyche gives his reaction to #MCIEVE and our hard-fought point at the Etihad 🔵 pic.twitter.com/s73D1M25GE
— Everton (@Everton) December 26, 2024
Everton manager Sean Dyche praised Pickford’s penalty save, saying, “It is good from the analysts to give him as much benefit of as many penalties as they can. Credit to him for making the right decision in the spur of the moment.” Here above are his post-match analysis.
Player of the Match
Jordan Pickford was the key player for Everton, manning the post and making many saves, including the penalty stop from Haaland to keep City frustrated.
What Next
Manchester City’s next match is against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Sunday, December 29. As for Everton, they’ll be hosting Nottingham Forest at Goodison Park on Sunday, but before that, they have an FA Cup Third Round match against Peterborough United on January 9, 2025.
EPL Table
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