City blow chance to reach top spot

Carlos Tevez provided Manchester City with some Christmas cheer, but Everton denied them the present they really wanted by clinching a 2-1 win at Eastlands last night.

Instead of sitting top of the table on December 25 for the first time since 1929, the Blues remain in third, beaten by the Toffees once more who registered their fourth successive win on City turf.

First–half efforts from Tim Cahill and Leighton Baines were enough for the visitors, who defended valiantly once they had gained the initiative and secured their first win since October.

Not even the needless dismissal of Victor Anichebe could stop them as Mario Balotelli hit a post after Yaya Toure's deflected effort had pulled one back.

Cahill found the net with a trademark header after only four minutes.

Everton's second came when Pablo Zabaleta was off the field having stitches inserted in a wound which followed a clash of heads with Cahill.

The bitter pill for City came in the form of Baines and Anichebe combining down the wing Zabaleta was supposed to be patrolling and Cahill providing the lay–off for a precise finish.

The hosts threw men forward and saw six shots blocked in one barrage, with Phil Neville getting in the way of a Zabaleta shot and Phil Jagielka stopping one from Kompany, both of which brought penalty appeals.

Aleksandar Kolarov also went close with a free–kick Tim Howard just managed to turn round the post as it threatened to creep in.

The Serb went close with a dipping shot at the start of the second period.

But City were running out of ideas until Anichebe threw then a lifeline with his ridiculous red card.

The striker barged over Joe Hart as he challenged for the ball.

And his needless trip of Zabaleta four minutes earned an obvious second yellow card and left Everton to fight on with only 10 men.

City needed a slice of good fortune to get themselves back into the contest as Yaya Toure's wayward shot struck Jagielka and bounced in.

City went agonisingly close to grabbing an equaliser when Mario Balotelli sprinted on to Toure's excellent pass, chipped Howard but saw the ball bounce back off the post.

Howard recovered his ground quickly enough to deny Tevez's close range effort with the follow–up.

City piled forward at the end, but their only notable entry into referee Peter Walton's notebook was for the dismissal of Kolo Toure for two injury–time bookings.