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

Manchester City wasted the chance to get their Premier League title challenge back on track after being held to a 0-0 draw by relegation-threatened Norwich City at Carrow Road on Saturday.

One point wasn't enough from the game in hand City had on Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur above them, as well as West Ham United and Manchester United below. The Citizens stay fourth, nine points adrift of top spot and just two ahead of fifth.

Meanwhile, Norwich remain in the bottom three but have drawn level on points with 17th-placed Sunderland.

The Canaries handed a start to Chelsea loanee Patrick Bamford in an attacking lineup detailed by the club:

Meanwhile, the visitors looked to offset the injury enforced absence of Yaya Toure with destroyer Fernando in the middle and Jesus Navas on the wing. The Citizens also gave a rare start to striker Wilfried Bony, per the club:

Norwich skipper Russell Martin tried to set an intimidatory tone for the home side early on when he scythed through City playmaker David Silva with less than three minutes gone.

City captain Vincent Kompany nearly nodded in the resulting free-kick after Norwich goalkeeper John Ruddy made a hash of claiming Silva's floated delivery.

Aguero won a corner soon after, following a smart combination of passes between Silva, Bony and Navas, as City looked ominous going forward early on. 

But Norwich battled back thanks mostly to Martin and Nathan Redmond's work on the right flank. With Aguero and Silva drifting inwards from the left, that side of City's defence was always vulnerable. Left-back Gael Clichy was regularly outnumbered two-on-one during the opening exchanges.

Whenever City got back on the ball, Silva was in for some rough treatment. Ryan Bennett soon went into the book after another robust challenge sent City's diminutive schemer tumbling.

Sky Sports Statto provided an image of the tackle:

Stuart Brennan of the Manchester Evening News was less than impressed by Norwich's ultra-physical focus on Silva:

Yet the rough and tumble wasn't all one way. City centre-back Nicolas Otamendi went into the book after cynically denying the raiding Martin yet another free run on the overlap.

But that infraction couldn't disrupt City's attacking threat. The visitors went close again when Aguero forced Ruddy into an acrobatic dive to palm away a strong shot.

Aguero was proving a true menace. In particular, his link up play with Silva, Navas and others really stood out, per Squawka:

But try as they might, the visitors couldn't turn their tidy approach play into a decisive breakthrough. In response, Norwich seized the initiative with some terrific wing play, featuring Martin Olsson and Matt Jarvis, that left the men from Manchester briefly rocking and roused the home crowd.

The prime moment of Norwich's ascendancy came when debutant Bamford rattled the crossbar with a superb half-volley.

But the Canaries received a blow when Redmond gave way to injury on the eve of half-time. Graham Dorrans replaced the dangerous wide man as the opening 45 minutes or so passed by without a goal.

During the break, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp expressed his belief City's reliance on two defensive-minded central midfielders wasn't working:

Whatever the platform in the middle, though, City struggled to get going in attacking areas early in the second half. A virtually anonymous Bony was a chief culprit, a fact detailed by Squawka:

City boss Manuel Pellegrini soon withdrew the static Bony for the greater width and pace offered by Raheem Sterling.

Despite the change, it was still Aguero who remained City's main threat. He won a free-kick on the very edge of the box, a whisker away from being a penalty, after being bundled over at the end of a typically powerful run. Surprisingly, Silva wasted the very promising set piece.

Norwich boss Alex Neil responded to the away side's dominance by introducing strikers Cameron Jerome and Dieumerci Mbokani for the lively Bamford and midfielder Wes Hoolahan.

Michael Bailey of the Norwich Evening News and Mustard TV described the shape the home team took after the changes:

Pellegrini then made another change of his own, bringing on young forward Kelechi Iheanacho for Navas. But City were still left looking to Aguero for inspiration. Sadly for the Citizens, he blazed over when presented with a great shooting chance late on.

City's blunt attacking showing in the second half was best summed up by this statistic from OptaJoe:

"

0 - Manchester City didn't attempt a single shot on target in the second half against Norwich City. Disappointment.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 12, 2016"

As Sky Sports noted, an inability to score away from home has hampered the Citizens' title bid this season:

Post-Match Reaction

City 'keeper Joe Hart bemoaned his team's drab showing, indicating there wasn't much for either stopper to do, per Squawka News:

By contrast, Norwich boss Neil praised Ruddy's day:

He also commended the focus his players showed to keep City at bay after the break:

The point will be welcomed more by the Canaries than City. Pellegrini's men wasted a great chance to leapfrog Arsenal and put themselves right back in the title mix. Now, they are left looking over their shoulders at the pack chasing fourth place.