Man City highlight 'big problem' for Everton as Guardiola highlights inconsistency in credentials

Pep Guardiola lamented the two-point loss but had no complaints about Everton's approach after the Merseysiders snatched an unexpected 1-1 draw at the Etihad Stadium.

Demarai Gray canceled out an Erling Haaland strike with a superb equalizer in a spirited Premier League clash on Saturday.

Everton's game plan frustrated City in a stop-start, crude and moody contest - although the biggest contributor to the 11-minute stoppage time played in the second half was the need for the one of the assistant referees to have his helmet repaired.

City manager Guardiola said: "They scored a fantastic goal with the first shot on target they had, so we played a very good game.

"Of course, the result was not expected but that's football, it's not the first time this has happened. We did everything to win. They played very well.

"Afterwards, they broke the rhythm a bit because the referees weren't ready but, in general, we did everything and unfortunately we couldn't win."

Guardiola's only real gripe involved a perceived lack of consistency on the part of referee Andrew Madley.

He claimed he had no problem with Haaland's booking for a thoughtless tackle on Vitaliy Mykolenko and revealed he had to tell the Norwegian, who was fired after an early clash with Ben Godfrey, to calm down.

However, the Spaniard was upset that his players' tough challenges weren't punished in the same way.

Guardiola said: "It's a yellow card for Erling, definitely. I said: 'Careful, this is an action, it can be dangerous, we can't play 10v11. know what happened - he was a little angry from the first action on his ankle.

"But Jack Grealish was shot three or four times, nothing happened and (Haaland's) first action was a yellow card."

When asked if he complained that his players weren't adequately protected, Guardiola replied: "No, no, no."

It was the first point in four games for 16th-placed Everton. The Toffees, who lost 2-1 at home to Wolves in their first game after the World Cup, are now two points above the relegation zone.

Boss Frank Lampard said: "I think we've limited their good chances (from City), and in terms of character, discipline and following the plan, working consistently for around 100 minutes, understanding that it's It's hard sometimes and you have to stick with it, I think we did it brilliantly and deserved a point.

"It's a big blow for us because it's coming from a punch against Wolves. Coming to the champions and picking something up in a tough game is a big deal for us, although one point, but it's a big problem for the locker room.

“It would be great to come here and open up against City and try to go together, but they are at such a level and the position we are in at the moment is not for us. I think we can be really proud of the way we approached the game."

Lampard described Gray's shot as "unstoppable", adding: "When he hits a goal like that, it just shows you how talented he is, and that earned us a point."

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Lampard also spoke about Michael Keane's withdrawal from the matchday squad, saying: "We hope it was a small injury to the back of his knee that he suffered in training yesterday and again in the warm-up today, so we'll have it scanned."