Source: Daily_Mail
Manchester City 1 Everton 2: Tim Cahill and Leighton Baines help 10-man Toffees upstage Carlos Tevez
Would it be wrong to resubmit a transfer request so soon after publicly withdrawing it? Such a thought is unlikely to have entered Carlos Tevez's mind but, having declared to his employers a desire to lead Manchester City's pursuit of Champions League football a few hours earlier, he must have expected more from his colleagues than this. Against an Everton side who performed with so much more fluency and determination until they lost Victor Anichebe to a stupid red card, Roberto Mancini's side were awful - as inept as they have been at Eastlands this season. Toffees stick together: Everton' players mob Leighton Baines after his stunning goal at the City of ManchesterThe statistics might tell a differentstory - 11 corners without reply, 67 per cent of the possession and a couple of reasonable penalty shouts - but that was rather misleading. It was the apathy they displayed in the opening 20 minutes, or even longer, that proved so costly. MATCH FACTS MAN CITY (4-2-1-3): Hart 6; Zabaleta 6,K Toure 5, Kompany 6, Kolarov 6; Milner 5 (Johnson 46min, 5), Barry 5; Y Toure 5;Silva 6, Tevez 5, Balotelli 4 (Jo 82). Subs not used: Given, Richards, Wright-Phillips, Boateng, Vieira. Booked: Kompany, Barry, K Toure. Sent off: K Toure.EVERTON (4-5-1): Howard 7; Neville 7,Jagielka 7 (Hibbert 79), Distin 8, Baines 7; Coleman 7 (Saha 76), Fellaini 7, Rodwell 6, Cahill 8, Osman 6 (Bilyaletdinov 75, 5); Anichebe 5. Subs not used: Mucha, Beckford, Gueye, Yakubu. Booked: Fellaini, Anichebe.Sent off: Anichebe.Man of the match: Tim Cahill.Referee: Peter Walton 6. Two goals down after 19 minutes, thanks to a neat header from Tim Cahill and a superb curling strike fromLeighton Baines, they didn't look desperate to lead the English league at Christmas for the first time in 89 years. They seemed intimidated by the prospect of leapfrogging neighbours Manchester United. Everything about them suggested they froze, even the way the dressed in the sub-zero temperatures. While Everton's players wore not a single pair of gloves and five of them chose short-sleeve shirts, City'splayers sported six pairs of gloves, four snoods and two pairs of tights between them. Midfield 'hard man' Yaya Toure wore all three - as did Mario Balotelli, whose attitude was just appalling. It was symbolic of the difference between the teams. While Everton put in some hard graft, City gave the impression they would rather be somewhere else. Either that or they wereguilty of over-confidence. Mancini was furious, kicking bottles, throwing touchline tantrums. Tevez's U-turn was supposed to give his side a timely lift but, after the elation, there was a crushing sense of deflation following a defeat that again exposed the frailties in this expensively assembled team. Head boy: Tim Cahill pounced after four minutes to give Everton the lead They also ended the game with 10 men thanks to the late dismissal of Kolo Toure. An Everton side without a win in seven previous games are also unbeaten away since the end of August and they again underlined that they have been in a false position under the guidance of the brilliant David Moyes. CAHILL STRIKES AGAIN Tim Cahill kept up his extraordinary scoring record for Everton at Manchester City with his fourth goal against the Eastlands club.The Australia midfielder scored the winner in a 1-0 win back in 2004 before being sent off for lifting his shirt over his head. His goal on Monday night was his third in successive campaigns after a last-minute winner in 2008 and a goal in a 2-0 win last season. Cahill opened the scoring in the fourth minute after a nicely executed move made all the easier by the lacklustre response of their hosts. While Mancini's rage appeared to be directed at his £19million full back, Aleksandar Kolarov, it was a goal that reflected badly on the entire City defence. There was no real reaction when Leon Osman delivered the ball into the path of the advancing Baines, just as there was a lack of urgency when Anichebe then flicked on the cross fromEverton's left back. Kolarov's absence did allow Seamus Coleman to plant the ball on Cahill's head unopposed, but Kolo Toure wasnot exactly well positioned when the Australian then squeezed his header between Joe Hart and the City goalkeeper's near post. Even if City thought the ball had drifted out of play, they should know to play to the whistle. Rare: Leighton Baines curled home a stunning second with his right footWhile Cahill celebrated his ninth goal of the season, City's player looked at one another in shock. They responded with a decent chance. Asuper ball from Yaya Toure found David Silva, but the Spaniard drove his left-foot effort into the side-netting. Marching orders: Victor Anichebe was dismissed on the hour for a second bookable offenceA lack of cohesion in defence soon led to another setback for City, with Baines scoring Everton's second inthe 19th minute. Again it was beautifully executed. A swift exchange ofpasses that started with Baines and continued with Anichebe and Cahill ended with a superb right-foot shot. But again City were far too casual.Mancini was so disgusted he kicked a water bottle. Everton's defending was far more impressive, with Sylvain Distin containing Tevez brilliantly. Mancini replaced James Milner with Adam Johnson at the start of the second half,and his side did attack with more purpose. Kolarov, in particular, threatened. Lifeline: Yaya Toure was fortunate to see his wayward shot deflect in off Phil Jagielka But it was not until the dismissal ofAnichebe on the hour for fouls on Hart and Pablo Zabaleta that City were given a chance. A goal came 12 minutes later. Silva and Johnson combined before Yaya Toure's shot was guided beyond Howard by the unfortunate Phil Jagielka. Commitment: Carlos Tevez was at his hard-working best two hours after announcing his intention to stay at EastlandsMinutes later, City almost equalised.Yaya Toure's ball from inside his own half was controlled brilliantly by Balotelli, who lobbed the advancing Howard, only to see his effort bounce back off the post. Tevez seized on the rebound but Howard recovered to make a terrific double save. He denied Tevez again after that, extending the City skipper's run to 10 attempts without a goal against Everton. No ill will: Tevez received a warm welcome from the fans he almost walked away fromKolo Toure allowed a sense of frustration to get the better of him. Two challenges in less than a minute, first on Distin then Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, and he was gone. To think he was going to replace Tevez as captain. Manchester City v Everton: How the action unfolded at EastlandsYou're having a laugh? Now Tevez vows to stay at City. a week after quit threatTottenham target Pienaar insists Everton need to buy new playersMANCHESTER CITY FC