Manchester City vs. Everton: Score, Reaction from 2016 Premier League Match

Manchester City and Everton played to a 0-0 draw at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday.

The match provided more entertainment value than the final scoreline would suggest. The sides traded attacking opportunities across both halves en route to 29 total attempts at goal. But the necessary finishing touch went missing with Joe Hart and Tim Howard each up to the task when called upon.

City manager Manuel Pellegrini, who criticised the officiating after a 2-1 loss to Everton in the first leg of the Capital One Cup semi-finals last week, hoped for a more complete performance from his side that would yield three points, as noted by Mark Booth of the club's official site.

"Everton has a style of play, they're an attacking team under Roberto [Martinez]," Pellegrini said. "They have players in a very good moment so we must be very careful with their counter attack. We must try to score more goals and do more damage to their defense but also be a balanced team."

Stuart Brennan of the Manchester Evening News noted the Toffees were late to arrive to Etihad Stadium because of some travel woes:

The match got started on time, though, and an interesting ebb and flow developed during the early stages of the first half. Both clubs enjoyed spells of possession and were able to create scoring chances as a result.

Kevin De Bruyne nearly started the scoring inside the opening 10 minutes as his effort from a difficult angle sailed into the side netting. Yaya Toure, who made his presence felt early and often in the first half, also had a promising look at goal only to see Tim Howard make a key save for Everton.

The Toffees' best opportunity before the break came courtesy of Leon Osman and Romelu Lukaku. The dynamic forward served as the role of distributor this time around as he found Osman with a pinpoint cross, but the veteran midfielder's effort narrowly missed the net.

Squawka Football passed along the statistics as the clubs headed into the break scoreless:

Sergio Aguero nearly broke the deadlock shortly after the hour mark. He found some space to deliver a well-struck volley, but it was directed right toward Howard, who made a nice reaction stop.

City started to take a stronger grip on the possession battle over the final 20 minutes as they pushed for the winning goal. They failed to breakdown a noticeably more cohesive Toffees back line, however, as frustration began to mount for the home side.

One last surge by the Sky Blues ended with a questionable John Stones tackle on Raheem Sterling in the box. Referee Roger East opted against awarding a penalty, and the final whistle followed a short time later.

Men in Blazers highlighted the lack of a call at the crucial moment:

Ultimately, Everton were able to stand tall in the defensive third and, with perhaps a little help from the officiating, earned a point for their efforts.

Doug McIntyre of ESPN FC credited the oft-maligned Howard for his return to form:

Manchester City's busy stretch of play continues Saturday when they welcome surprise top-four contenders Crystal Palace to the Etihad. The Sky Blues are going to need a far more efficient attacking effort in order to collect all three points from that fixture.

Meanwhile, Everton are also back in action Saturday as they travel to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea. The Toffees' improved defensive results since the calendar flipped to 2016 are a promising sign as they try to make a charge up the table during the campaign's second half.

City and Everton will meet again on Jan. 27 for the second leg of their League Cup tie.

Post-Match Reaction

City provided comments from Hart, who applauded the effort of his goalkeeping counterpart:

The club also highlighted remarks from Pellegrini concerning the late denial of a penalty:

On the flip side, Martinez believes today's result can help Everton looking forward to the Cup match: