A 90th minute penalty save by goalkeeper Ederson preserved Manchester City’s unbeaten record this season, although it may have come at a price with apparently serious injuries to Gabriel Jesus and Kevin De Bruyne.

De Bruyne was scythed down high on his knee by Crystal Palace substitute Jason Puncheon as City broke away after Luka Milivojevic’s penalty was saved by Ederson with his legs. The spot kick was awarded after Wilfried Zaha went down, apparently barged over by another substitute in the form of Raheem Sterling.

De Bruyne and Puncheon were both stretchered off, in fact, as was Palace’s captain Scott Dann earlier while Jesus left the field in tears. It was a bruising encounter.

The goalless draw means there will be no European record of consecutive league victories for City after they were held to a goalless draw - the first time they failed to score in 21 Premier League fixtures this season - by a superbly defiant Palace.

City’s run of wins ends at 18 - one behind the record held by Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich in 2013-14 - even if they extended their lead at the top of the league back to 14 points, ahead of champions Chelsea.

It came at a high price, with Jesus suffering an apparently serious knee injury (will that press the button on a January window move for Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez?) - as did, it seemed, Dann.

The point was precious for Palace but it could have been even more, a famous victory, in their fight to avoid relegation had Andros Townsend not spurned the best chance of the match deep into the second-half even before the penalty miss.

It was a tough first half for City, punctured by Jesus’s injury. He did the splits when he was challenged by Townsend, tried to carry on but eventually had to leave the pitch in tears. It seemed like a knee injury, potential ligament damage, for the Brazilian striker.

City were not in their stride. They were knocked out of it by Palace with the battle between Kyle Walker and Zaha summing up the home side’s defiance and also the threat that they themselves posed. Indeed, they could have gone ahead when there was a mix up involving Ederson and Eliaquim Mangala.

It appeared to be the defender’s fault as he ran too close to the goalkeeper as he attempted to clear a through ball, with the ball striking Mangala and falling to Christian Benteke. He hurried his shot, with it deflecting off Mangala for a corner. Then, from another corner, Ederson reacted quickly to turn away Patrick van Aanholt’s powerful volley which also took a deflection.

Palace suffered their own setback, again a potentially serious one, with Dann stretchered off after damaging his knee in bringing down Kevin de Bruyne on the edge of his own penalty area. Dann was clearly in considerable pain.

City were without their usual rhythm, with Leroy Sane struggling, losing possession and then provoking De Bruyne’s anger after another attack broke down. Then the German international was cautioned after kicking the ball away when he was caught offside.

Still they went closest to scoring in the first-half when Jesus’s replacement, Sergio Aguero, cut across goal with his shot from the area’s edge deflecting up off Jairo Riedewald’s heel to wrong-foot goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey and thud back off the post.

Even after that the play was broken again with Aguero having to receive treatment for an apparent nosebleed, with the injury time in the first-half rising to six minutes.

As the hour mark approached Guardiola moved to withdraw Ilkay Gundogan, who had just curled a shot narrowly wide, and introduce Raheem Sterling with his team by now camped in the Palace half and pushing hard for the breakthrough. Bernardo Silva therefore dropped a little deeper but, again, Guardiola was going for it.

They should have gone ahead when a deflected cross by Sterling, from the right, ran all the way through to Sane only for Hennessey to block his side-footed shot from close range, with the ball rebounding off his chest.

Finally Palace created a clear opportunity of their own, and one that should have been taken by Townsend, after Zaha’s driven ball across the face of the area ran to him. But Townsend side-footed high over the crossbar with Hodgson holding his face in disbelief. As did Palace fans, again, when the penalty was saved.

Man city never see anything. debryne injured and silva too right? hahaha...he go be like film.

olodo na en be this OP! the game end 0-0 and you dey talk sey their unbeaten don end...misleading thread

No mind yeye op and silly others , celebrating draw like say na 5-0 dem beat them.

slim002:
olodo na en be this OP! the game end 0-0 and you dey talk sey their unbeaten don end...misleading thread

Na english language dey flop op. It would hv been Crystal Palace ended Man city winning streak.

Im sure all man utd fans will be happy with man city finally dropping points....if only we had won our last 3 matches.

Dumb fella.. How can an unbeaten run end with a draw... Receive sense.