MANCHESTER – Manchester City defender John Stones said it was “difficult to take”, after his side slipped in their bid to catch English Premier League leaders Arsenal as they were held to a 1-1 home draw by strugglers Everton in their final match of 2022 on Saturday.

He said: “I don’t really know what to say. I feel like we’ve lost two points. It’s difficult to take after the game. We showed great character to keep fighting and pushing. It was a bit of a scrappy game.”

His manager Guardiola added: “The result was not expected but that is football, it is not the first time it happened.

“We did everything to win. They played really well.”

Erling Haaland made a positive start for Guardiola’s men when he latched onto Riyad Mahrez’s pass to tap home his 21st league goal of the season on 24 minutes.

After a number of stoppages early in the second half – with one taking over six minutes as the assistant referee’s communications headset was repaired – Demarai Gray levelled for the visitors.

The Everton winger surged up the left flank in a rare counter-attack in the 64th minute. He then cut inside and unleashed a curler from the edge of the box that left City goalkeeper Ederson beaten.

The result left second-placed City seven points behind Arsenal, while Everton are 16th with 15 points – two points above the relegation zone.

Guardiola’s side came into the match as the league’s highest scorers but were often left frustrated by their opponents.

Haaland came close to scoring when he latched onto a well-timed Kevin de Bruyne ball inside the Everton box – only to direct his effort into the side-netting.

Stones then came close to doubling City’s advantage near the end of the half, as his header rattled the post of Jordan Pickford’s goal.

“To be 1-0 down at half-time, it’s easy to let that get to you but we knew we would get a chance,” Everton defender Ben Godfrey told Sky Sports.

“I think we showed our character today. We’ve always had a team spirit.

“That’s the standard. Work rate and togetherness. It feels good to get a point.”

His manager Frank Lampard added: “Particularly at City, it’s character, personality and fight (which is most important) because it’s 11 against 11 and we know how good their 11 is.

“It wasn’t a complicated game plan defensively, a lot of stuff is getting across and doing your job...

“Keep going no matter what... That has to be the blueprint going forward.”

Like City, Newcastle also missed the chance to close the gap to Arsenal when they were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Leeds on Saturday. The Magpies are third, nine points adrift of the Gunners and were on run of six straight league wins.

“The desire was there, the quality was there, but the finishing wasn’t there,” Newcastle boss Eddie Howe told the BBC.

“We paid the price for that.” REUTERS, AFP