Manchester City 1-1 Everton Player Ratings as the Cityzens drop more points after Erling Haaland’s shocking penalty miss

Kicking off the Boxing Day matches were Manchester City and Everton, locking horns in what was certainly an interesting side. With the Merseyside visitors making a habit of getting strong results against the league’s top dogs, there were questions as to whether City’s topsy-turvy form would continue on the night. 

For the most part, City started off well and for all the chances that they created, managed to open the scoring with a well-worked move. All in all the Cityzens were in control for large parts of the first half, but as has been the case in recent weeks found themselves vulnerable in defense, suffering another unnecessary goal to Iliman Ndiaye before halftime. The second half saw Erling Haaland miss a vital penalty to seal all three points for the home side. 

All in all, the game was an entertaining watch with City struggling to break their rut and poor form, whilst Everton picked up a point in a big result away from home. 

Man City Player Ratings vs Everton 

Goalkeeper

Stefan Ortega: 6.5/10- Did not have a lot to do and was mostly solid in whatever was asked of him. Was caught on the other side for the goal which was not his fault.

Defenders

Joško Gvardiol: 7/10- Showed a lot of initiative in bombing forward and trying to help out the attack, especially in the second half. Managed to keep things secure on his side apart from a few crosses that got through. 

Nathan Ake: 7/10- Strong defensively and in marking the Everton strikers. Played as well as he could on the night and was very unlucky to have come off injured. 

Manuel Akanji: 6/10- Despite his solid performances week in and week out, he found himself on the spot after failing to clear an incoming cross. His clumsy attempt instead led the ball to fall at Ndiaye’s feet, who gladly put it in the net.

Rico Lewis: 6.5/10- Standard performance from the youngster who was ever present in the midfield and in defense. Was slightly hard done by his teammate for the goal they conceded in the first half, as a deft touch took the ball away from him. 

Midfielders

Mateo Kovačić: 6.5/10- Sat much deeper in midfield, trying to dictate the play, and often was the man to stop attacks from developing. Put himself about to try and intercept passes from time to time as well and had a good performance overall. 

Bernardo Silva: 7/10- Took his goal extremely well, arriving in the box as a bit of a surprise factor to try and catch the defense off guard, and managed to do exactly that. Was decent in the buildup as well. 

Phil Foden: 7/10- The creative spark of the team, provided a lot of opportunities for the attackers to run in behind. Dropped deeper to create and unleashed a few venomous shots of his own from time to time. 

Attackers

Jeremy Doku: 6.5/10- Struggled to really trouble his marker on the night and at times seemed a little lost in possession. Managed to put Silva clean through on goal and could not really make a strong impact other than that. 

Savinho: 7.5/10- Had a few good touches and caused a lot of problems down the right-hand side of the City attack. Was troubling his marker and even managed to win a penalty after a mazy run. 

Erling Haaland: 6.5/10- A little more involved in the buildup today but made a mess out of a few passes played into him. Missed an important penalty, and was offside for the follow-up which summed up another disappointing night for the Norwegian. 

Substitutes

Kevin De Bruyne: N/A

Jahmai Simpson-Pusey: N/A

İlkay Gündoğan: N/A

Manager

Pep Guardiola: 6.5/10- Failed to find the answers tactically or break down the opposition too many times. Should have created more openings despite the penalty miss and were disappointing and predictable in the end. 

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Everton Player Ratings vs Man City

Goalkeeper

Jordan Pickford: 7.5/10- Another exceptional performance from the English goalkeeper who made some great saves and important claims, easing pressure on his defense. Saved the penalty which turned out to be a key moment in the game.

Defenders

Vitaly Mykolenko: 6/10- Struggled to keep up with his man for a lot of the game and was very careless with some of his tackling. Gave away a needless penalty which was thankfully saved but could have easily resulted in a goal and a sending-off.

Jarrad Branthwaite: 7/10- Slightly unlucky with the deflection that saw the ball go past the keeper. Managed to keep up with Haaland on the ground and aerially, keeping things secure at the back and was decent on the ball too. 

James Tarkowski: 7/10- At times hassled and hurried when on the ball but had the experience to not lose the ball in key positions. Was resolute defensively and made it incredibly tough for the City attackers to get through. 

Seamus Coleman: 6.5/10- Did well to get up and down the flank in the first half and managed to keep Doku at bay for large parts. Was silly to pick up a yellow card for unnecessarily lynching Halaand before the penalty.

Midfielders 

Orel Mangala: 6.5/10- A little too relaxed at times in possession but was mostly able to manage any pressing from the City attackers. Played through some of their players at times and was very sound with his positioning.  

Idrissa Gueye: 7/10- Solid in the heart of midfield, keeping things tight and playing like a real enforcer. Was key in turning over possession for his side and also ensuring that City couldn’t play through them too easily. 

Abdoulaye Doucoure: 6.5/10- Energetic and active in midfield, playing the box-to-box role for his side. Slightly tackles shy on the night, especially by his own standards.

Attackers 

Jack Harrison: 6.5/10- Linked up well with the likes of Coleman and Mangala at times, finding himself up against Gvardiol and floating in a good ball from time to time. Needed to be a little more dangerous and show intent in his gameplay. 

Iliman Ndiaye: 7.5/10- Always looked dangerous and showed intent to create something whenever he got the ball. Found himself in good positions from time to time and was key in his side keeping the ball in the final third. 

Dominic Calvert-Lewin: 6.5/10- Linked up play well and was a menace at times for the City defense. Couldn’t really pose much threat himself on the night, but was willing to be a team player and let others play off of him.

Substitutes

Armando Broja: N/A

Jesper Lindstrøm: N/A

Nathan Patterson: N/A

Manager

Sean Dyche: 7/10- Set his side up well to soak up pressure and hit City on the break. Could have tuned things a little more to go for a winner but will be pleased with the result regardless.

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