Neither West Ham United nor Manchester City were able to find the net at Upton Park this evening.
While Manchester City had more of the possession, the hosting Hammers will argue that they had the better opportunities in front of goal.
Sports Mole has looked back over the 90 minutes to determine if either side was deserving of the three points that ultimately eluded them both.
Match statistics:
West Ham:
Shots 18
On target 8
Possession 39%
Corners 7
Fouls 12
Man City:
Shots 6
On target 1
Possession 61%
Corners 3
Fouls 11
Was the result fair?
The statistics above will tell you that Man City had more chances and a greater amount of possession. What they won't tell you is that West Ham had a goal incorrectly ruled out for offside and arguably had the better goalscoring opportunities. For that reason alone, neither side can realistically say that they did enough to warrant the three points.
West Ham's performance
It was by no means pretty at times, but they got the job done. When City were controlling proceedings, the West Ham rearguard held firm and thwarted everything that was thrown at them. No doubt they were also feel slightly aggrieved to have seen Kevin Nolan's early strike wrongly ruled out for offside.
Man City's performance
The champions really missed the influence of David Silva today. On numerous occasions they had the ball 20 yards from the West Ham goal, but the likes of Samir Nasri and Gareth Barry do not possess the knack that the pint-sized Spanish attacker has of unlocking a defence. They may have had 18 shots, but not many of those were what you would call golden opportunities.
Sports Mole's man of the match
James Collins: The Welsh centre-back epitomised everything that was good about West Ham today. He threw himself in front of every City shot and even made a block with his head while laying down inside the penalty area during the second half!
Biggest gaffe
Mario Balotelli has not scored away from home in the Premier League since December 2011 and on the evidence of today, he'll be waiting a long time to break that sequence. His best chance today was laid on plate by Carlos Tevez, but somehow the Italian lifted the ball well over the bar from six yards out.
Referee performance
Howard Webb is regarded as England's best referee and he showed why in this match. In all honesty he was barely noticeable, which is a good thing for a match official. With regards to the decision to disallow Nolan's goal, he was let down by his assistant.
What next?
Man City: If ever there was a must-win match for City, it comes on Tuesday night when Ajax visit in the Champions League. Following on from that, they welcome Tottenham Hotspur to the Etihad Stadium next Sunday.
West Ham: On the same day as City play host to Tottenham, the Hammers travel to Newcastle United.
Liam Apicella
