Well, we’re going to wrap this blog up now. A 0-0 draw, but City have the chance to make amends on January 27, when they host Everton in the second leg of their League Cup semi-final. City play Palace at home on Saturday, and if they play anything like they did today, they’ll be OK.
Thanks for reading. Bye!
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Final minutes of Spurs v Leicester:
They deserved to win that, did City. Everton played well in the first half, but City completely dominated after the break. Sterling, Navas and Aguero all went close, but somehow Everton clung on. City could yet lose ground on Arsenal, but Manuel Pellegrini should be satisfied with the performance. They were just unlucky today.
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About 10 minutes left at Liverpool:
Well, what an end to the game. Sterling attacked Stones in the box, went to the byline, and it looked like a clear trip. Roger East pointed for a goal kick, and, weirdly, Sterling didn’t seem to complain. So strange: it looked nailed on. At the final whistle, Yaya Toure made straight for the ref to give his two cents, but the chance had gone, and City drop two important points.
Full-time: Man City 0-0 Everton
That’s it!
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90 min + 3: Final seconds here, but surely that was a penalty? It looked a clear trip!
90 min +2: That must be a penalty! Stones on Sterling! Roger East says no! Unbelievable!
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90 min +1: Chaos in the Everton defence, but finally they hack it clear. City really pressing here, and Silva feeds Sagna, whose cross is long. Sterling retrieves it, and Aguero is fed on the edge of the box, tries to turn between two defenders, and goes down! Penalty? Roger East says no! Aguero is upset! That looked close.
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90 min: Manuel Pellegrini is up off the bench. Navas motors down the right, and Baines does well to stay with him, but it’s another corner! City’s 12th. Can they find something? Three minutes of stoppage time.
89 min: Chance for Lukaku! Stones found himself in an advanced position, played it back for Besic, who crossed first time for Lukaku … but the Belgian’s header was wide! A decent effort, but, again, he might have hit the target.
88 min: Stones loses it on the halfway line to Sterling, but the ball for Aguero is read well by Funes Mori. City have just lost their momentum in the past five minutes or so.
87 min: Foul by Lukaku on Toure. City play it long, but they’re short on time, and Everton win it back. Audible groans from the City fans.
86 min: It’s crazy that Man City haven’t scored here: they’ve been so dominant in this second half. Pienaar does very well to buy a free kick from Sagna in the Man City right-back slot, and Everton send men forward.
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84 min: Everton clear the danger, but this is relentless Man City pressure. Everton can’t get out of their penalty box.
83 min: Sterling feeds Clichy on the overlap, but his cross is well defended by Stones. Still work to do though: it’s a corner.
82 min: Hart does well to punch under pressure, and the whistle goes for a free kick. Eight minutes left. Can City force a winner?
81 min: Barkley looks for Lukaku, but Otamendi does well to come across on the cover. This is a better spell of possession here for the visitors, and Baines charges through the middle. Corner, although it should have been a free-kick on the edge: he was caught late by Toure.
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80 min: Silva’s ball in is cleared, and so is the second one, but Everton can’t keep hold of it, and it keeps coming back. It’s attack versus defence at the moment, and Aguero goes in behind, but the angle is against him, and his chipped finish is over the bar.
79 min: Silva shoots from the edge of the box. It’s deflected, and it’s another corner.
78 min: Everton look as though they’ve settled for a point – there hasn’t been too much going the other way for them. Stones coughs it up, and City break with Navas, but Stones atones for his error by heading powerfully away. Serious Man City pressure here.
77 min: Everton are in a line on the edge of their box. City dominant in possession, and Clichy’s cross looks for Navas, who is free, but his header is over the bar. The cross was hung up by Clichy, and Navas just couldn’t get the power.
75 min: City have had 65% of possession in this second half. They’ve played very well: they just need a goal. Hart comes out to punch before Kone can get to it, and City can build again.
73 min: De Bruyne smacks one high over the bar, and he’s replaced by David Silva.
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72 min: Everton are clinging on. I can’t believe City haven’t scored. Jagielka just managed to get a toe on another cross from the right, and Funes Mori whacks clear. Lukaku can’t hold the ball, and Everton have to defend again.
70 min: Double change for Everton: Steven Pienaar for Gerard Deulofeu, and Arouna Kone on for Leon Osman. Stones is still on the pitch.
69 min: Demichelis came through the back of Lukaku, but no foul called, and City counter-attack. Nothing doing, but it’s surely only a matter of time before they score. Aguero is in … but Howard foils him again! Aguero got the wrong side of the defender, but Howard came up big with the save!
67 min: Everton make a rare incursion into City territory, and Osman’s cross is a good one. Demichelis heads clear, but this is a chance for Everton to settle in possession.
66 min: Baines does well to smack it clear. But it come back to Navas, who drills one across the face of goal … and Howard with a kick-save! No one could follow up for City! Everton are under the cosh.
65 min: Dealt with well by Everton, but City pick it up on halfway and move forward again. Sterling dribbles, feints, delays, and finally shoots from a wideish position, but Howard saves with his legs! Serious pressure here by Man City. Corner.
64 min: Jagielka cuts out Sterling’s cross. Another corner.
62 min: City are on top here, and Everton can’t get the ball; they’re pinned back in their own half. Navas, who has been excellent, goes at Baines again, but Funes Mori and Jagielka have defended with resilience, and they get this one away. It keeps coming back, though!
60 min: Howard blocks from Aguero! Aguero caught it on the volley, 15 yards out, but it was straight at the goalie. Either side of him and City would be ahead, but Howard did well: it came quickly at him.
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59 min: Oviedo hasn’t come on yet: Stones wants to continue. But is he fit to carry on? Toure accepts a pass in the box and tries to barrel his way through the Everton defence, but Funes Mori does well to block. Corner, but this is a good spell for City.
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58 min: Sergio Aguero is clear through the middle, and lashes on towards goal, but he’s brought back for an offside. City are pumping it up here, and Everton need to get on the ball. Deulofeu gets away from Clichy down the right flank, but his cross is dreadful, and it’s out for a throw on the other side.
57 min: Otamendi thought he was pushed in the box, but no call came from Roger East. Everton living on the edge here.
Bryan Oviedo is going to come on for John Stones.
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56 min: Navas, who has been prominent in this second half, crosses again, and Everton can’t clear. Jagielka head behind for a corner.
55 min: Navas fires one into the side netting, and it’s a goal kick, although he wanted a corner.
That was great defending from Stones just then, by the way. Sterling thought he had scored.
54 min: Stones looks in a bad way, and Roberto Martinez needs to change this. Great chance for Sterling! De Bruyne got clear down the right, crossed intelligently, and Sterling hit it … but Stones got back to block! Big chance. City on top here.
53 min: Played in towards Fernando, who heads towards goal, but a goal kick is given. Everton don’t always look 100% assured on these set pieces.
52 min: De Bruyne gets to the byline, and Barry is smartly over to block the cross. Another Man City corner. It’s half-cleared, and Navas hits it from range … just wide! It took a deflection, and it’ll be another corner.
51 min: Stones went down initially after Sterling went beyond him and got to the byline. It looks like his knee, and Stones has gone to the touchline, but he’s OK to continue for now. Watch this space.
50 min: A waste, and for the second time in the match City streak forward after an Everton corner is cleared. Besic stops Aguero with a crude foul, and is deservedly booked.
John Stones is down. It doesn’t look good. We’ll take a pause.
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49 min: Nervy moments for Everton just then as Sterling looked to worry Stones, and Everton blam it clear. But they have a threat going the other way, and Otamendi has to be alert to stop Lukaku. Corner.
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48 min: Early Everton pressure, but Baines’s ball in is too high for Lukaku. Everton win it back, though, and Lukaku rolls Demichelis on the edge of the box … but his touch lets him down! He just miscontrolled, and Hart was out quickly to gather, but that was a chance. Maybe the one area Lukaku could develop: his close control is perhaps not all it ought to be.
We're back!
46 min: Right Here, Right Now by Fatboy Slim finishes playing on the PA system, and Roger East blows his whistle to start the party again. No changes for either side.
And Tottenham-Leicester has intrigue. It’s here:
Liverpool v Arsenal sounds like a corker. Follow it here!
A very watchable 45 minutes, and the only thing we’re lacking is goals. Everton have looked accomplished, and are giving as good as they’ve got. Toure went close for City with a firm header that Howard saved well, and De Bruyne shot wide when well placed. Everton’s best chance fell to Leon Osman, who was so close with a glorious controlled volley from Lukaku’s pass.
Silva and Kolarov in for City second half?
Half-time: Man City 0-0 Everton
That’s the whistle.
45 min: De Bruyne’s ball in is easily claimed by Howard. De Bruyne’s crossing has been sub-par.
44 min: Barkley, so good at accepting the pass on the half-turn, tries to run clear, but Fernando and Clichy are back quickly. A minute to the break, and it’s been hugely enjoyable. But here’s a free kick in a good area for City as Osman is penalised for a trip.
43 min: Lovely one-two between Deulofeu and Stones, but the Spaniard gets his cross wrong. Nice build-up, though: Everton have been easy on the eye through 40-odd minutes.
42 min: Aguero looks City’s main threat, but he’s called for offside, rightly: he went too early.
41 min: City go close! From the left, De Bruyne runs in behind Besic, crosses for Aguero, but Everton just do enough to close him out, and it bobbles through to Howard. Aguero looks chastened. And wet through.
40 min: Great pass for Lukaku from Deulofeu, hit with pace, round the back of the defender, but Hart is out quickly to smother.
38 min: Otamendi met it well, but Everton won the second ball, and it’s belted clear. City have just gone off the boil somewhat, and Toure has been quiet as an attacking asset. Might they look to David Silva in the second half?
37 min: Foul by Barkley on Toure, 40 yards from goal. De Bruyne to cross.
35 min: This is a really good game to watch, and it’s been pretty even. City have had more of the ball, but Everton have looked dangerous these past few minutes.
34 min: Lovely end-to-end stuff, and Aguero breaks menacingly. He goes past two, and is about to shoot, but Besic is across to save the day! More great defensive work from the Bosnian.
33 min: Now Lukaku goes close! Again, he burns Demichelis in the inside-right channel from a ball over the top, but his right-foot shot is too high! The angle was tight, but he might have got that on target.
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32 min: Now it’s Everton’s turn to attack, and they break at speed, but Deulofeu’s pass for Barkley is just overhit.
31 min: Oh, boy, what an effort! So unlucky from Leon Osman: that would have been a goal to treasure. Lukaku ran the inside-right channel, turned, and crossed for Osman, who ran from deep and just laced a fabulous left-foot volley from the edge of the box. It flew inches wide, and Hart was a spectator. Such a pure strike. The best effort of the match by far.
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29 min: Otamendi wins the header, but he can’t get the direction, and Howard claims, safely. That was a good stop earlier by the Everton goalie on Toure, by the way.
28 min: Sterling is pulled back by Barry, and that’s a clear yellow, but again, Roger East is in a generous mood, and no card is brandished. It should be one each! De Bruyne’s free kick is headed away by Barkley, but City are back on the front foot, and Sagna is nearly in! Hacked clear, but it’s a corner.
27 min: Chance for Everton on the break, but it goes wide for Baines and the momentum is lost, rather. It peters out, and City have the ball again.
26 min: De Bruyne’s ball in from the short corner is defended nervily by Everton. They just about get it clear, but City are cranking it up here.
24 min: Everton look so much better balanced with Besic in the team. But that’s a bad giveaway from the visitors, and Sterling comes forward at pace. Sagna looks to cross, but Baines does well to block. Corner, though.
22 min: For the third time in succession, Toure wins the header in the Man City box. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang couldn’t do that!
21 min: City with 55% of possession so far, but Everton are doing OK, and that’s a lovely change of pace from Deulofeu to breeze past Demichelis. Otamendi is quickly over to cover the danger, however. Top defending. Corner.
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20 min: It’s been entertaining and open so far. More of this, please! Clichy crosses one from the left, but it’s well overhit, and it’s out for a goal kick. On the bench, Kolarov may or may not be raising a quizzical eyebrow.
18 min: Nothing doing for Everton, and now City break: Aguero goes wide down the right hand side, looks to take on Besic, and is that a penalty? It looked as though Besic clipped Aguero as he went into the box, but on replay Besic got studs on it. A close call, but probably the right decision. Besic ostentatiously gives thumbs-up to the linesman.
Now Sterling worries Stones down the right, but the shot is over.
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16 min: Ooh, that’s a good save from Howard! Sagna, who provided that cross for Aguero against Watford, swings over a lovely curving cross, and Toure meets it well … but Howard parries! Good firm hands to keep out: the unmarked Toure got power in the header. Now Everton stream forward, and it’s a corner. It’s hotting up!
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14 min: Barkley, who carries the ball so well, feeds Baines, and links up well with Baines, but the ball for Lukaku is slightly overhit, and Sagna is over to clear. But now a chance for Osman, who plays Besic in, but the Bosnian’s backheel can’t quite find his partner. Shame: that was some imaginative attacking play.
12 min: Otamendi’s had a fresh fade, and looks the part, but that challenge on Osman is ludicrous, oafish – and, inexplicably, goes unpunished. He came right through the back, but Roger East said no booking. Weird. Everton look fairly solid so far.
Here’s Brad Wilson: “As an American Evertonian I would trade a result today for one next week in the League Cup. 2-1 Toffees today, though, I hope.”
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10 min: City starting to impose themselves, and Jagielka is called for a dopey push on Aguero, 30 yards from goal, right side. It’s not quite the right angle for a shot, but De Bruyne can tease over a cross and cause some mischief.
It’s hit straight out of play. Oops!
8 min: A decent enough rhythm so far: not too many niggly fouls or balls bobbling out of play. And a chance for De Bruyne! Sterling got free in a pocket of space, played a clever pass forward for the Belgian, running in beyond, but his shot from 10 yards was wide! He went for the near post, and just misplaced it. Nice work from Sterling, though.
6 min: Baines swings it in, and it’s cleared, but Barkley picks it up, dips his shoulder in that lovely, easy style of his, and shoots for goal … but it’s tame. Safely through to Hart; Barkley didn’t get hold of it.
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5 min: It’s a lovely slick surface: let’s hope for some crisp passing. Lukaku finds Barkley, and Demichelis is across smartly, but it’s out of play for an Everton corner. Chance here.
4 min: Slightly zany back-header from Besic, and it’s out for a needless corner. De Bruyne to take, and it’s a good ball, but Stones heads clear, confidently. Everton can’t clear, though, and City have pinned them back. Clichy crosses from the left, but it swings behind, and it’s a goal kick.
3 min: A measured start. Everton look fairly accomplished in possession, and Besic looks to get Deulofeu in on the right flank. It’s cut out. No alarms yet for either side.
And we're off!
1 min: Man City get us going. City in sky blue with white shorts; Everton all in blue. Everton are playing a conventional back four, and not a back three, as some pre-game chatter suggested.
My prediction: Man City 3-1 Everton. Give me yours!
For fans of dreamy No10s, it’s slightly disappointing that David Silva isn’t starting tonight. He was magnificent at the start of the season, but he hasn’t been himself since returning from injury, and he drops to the bench for this match. Kevin de Bruyne, therefore, will start in the central role, with Jesus Navas out wide. Navas is a throwback, isn’t he? An old-fashioned outside right, tricky, who doesn’t score goals. I like him!
And the excellent Bryan Graham has cockerels against foxes:
Man City could go top tonight, if they win and Arsenal lose. Scott Murray will be bringing you characteristically excellent MBM commentary from Anfield, and you can follow it here:
We’re about nine minutes from kick-off. It’s raining in Manchester. C’est la vie!
This is a big month for Man City. For such a talented team they’ve been surprisingly brittle so far this season, and a couple of bum results in the cups could mean Pep Guardiola is house-hunting in Alderley Edge sooner than expected. But their Premier League home form has been stellar – they’ve won more games at home than any other team in the league – and they should have enough tonight to beat an Everton team that is much less than the sum of its parts.
Oh, Everton. They’e played quite well this season, and some of their young players have truly sparkled, but they have a knack of producing quite hopeless results: for example, how do you come from in front to lose 3-4 at home to Stoke? Weirdly, their away form is quite good, and they’ve only lost once all season on the road, but they’re just so erratic. Who knows which Everton representation we’ll see tonight. In fact, who knows anything about anything any more?
Kick-off – all being well – remains at 7.45pm GMT, 2.45pm ET.
Hm. So maybe we will start on time after all. Who knows: maybe Romelu Lukaku will get changed on the bus, rush down the steps in his boots and on to the Etihad pitch just in time to score a brilliant hat-trick. Like something out of Napper Goes For Goal.
Anyway, team news: Demichelis partners Otamendi in central defence for Man City, and there’s a place for Gael Clichy: the hitherto excellent Aleksandr Kolarov drops to the bench. Fernando partners Yaya Toure in midfield, and David Silva, surprisingly, makes way for Jesus Navas, who broke his scoring duck last week against these very same opponents.
Cue many groans for Everton fans as Tim Howard is brought back in place of Joel, while John Stones, as expected, moves to right-back in place of the injured Seamus Coleman. Mo Besic continues in midfield, and there’s a surprise start for that wily old fox Leon Osman, just a few months short of his 35th birthday.
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Your teams
Man City: Hart, Sagna, Otamendi, Demichelis, Clichy, Toure, Fernando, Jesus Navas, De Bruyne, Sterling, Aguero. Subs: Zabaleta, Kolarov, Caballero, Delph, Silva, Iheanacho,
Humphreys.
Everton: Howard, Stones, Jagielka, Funes Mori, Baines, Barkley, Barry, Besic, Deulofeu, Lukaku, Osman. Subs: Robles, Oviedo, Kone, Mirallas, Lennon, Pienaar, Galloway.
Referee: Roger East (Wiltshire)
Hello and welcome
And the big news tonight is: Everton haven’t arrived yet. There’s traffic chaos on the M62, and the team bus has been delayed. No official word on a delayed kick-off, but don’t rule it out.
Tim will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s why David Silva is calling for toil, conscientiousness, and hard work:
“Any team will miss their captain when they’re out and we’re no exception. When you look all over the field there are lots of figures willing to step up to the plate when needed.
“We have lots of experience all over the team and it’s up to people like that to do that. Thinking positively, we’re battling on every front and involved in every trophy so it’s about trying to be involved as long as we can to the end of the season in each of those competitions.”
