The Rebound: the huge change Liverpool squandered and how Everton somehow turned things around

It was a real 'blink and you'll miss nothing' affair. Hell, you could have descended into a catatonic stupor, flat on your back in the centre of the room, staring at the ceiling as a chorus of your feistiest sleep paralysis demons distracted you with a faithful reproduction of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, and you still wouldn't have missed anything.

The anticipatory climb towards Manchester United's trip to Anfield on Sunday afternoon would have had you believe that this was a fixture on which the future of mankind hinged, a gladiatorial spectacle insofar that one down on their luck competitor was about to get mauled and scranned by a ravenous beast from the sunlit plains of loftier climes. Instead, it was more akin to watching trench warfare. In fact, considering the time of year, I'd be willing to wager that the fabled Christmas Day football match between British and German soldiers on the no-man's land of the Western Front over a century ago possessed more in the way of verve, skill, and aesthetic value.

For Liverpool, this was a notable opportunity squandered, and for the rest of us poor onlookers, it was a reminder that cruelty comes in many guises. There were momentary hints of occasion, from Trent Alexander-Arnold's devilishly close daisy-cutter to Diogo Dalot's late dismissal for reasons that Michael Oliver will presumably take to his grave, but by and large this was a 0-0 stalemate, dampened and dreary, that did little to enthuse or endear. Utterly dreadful.

Elsewhere, Roy Hodgson laughed. After being 2-0 up against his Crystal Palace side, Manchester City slumped to a 2-2 draw on home turf, dropping points in the Premier League for a fifth time in six outings. It has been quite a while since that last happened.

In the grand scheme of things, Pep Guardiola and his defending champions are probably not all that worried by their recent dip in form. After all, they are still only five points off the summit of the table, and they will hope to welcome both Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne back to their starting XI in the relatively near future, which, as far as timely boosts go, is probably right up there with that scene in Space Jam where the Looney Tunes actively embrace doping by voluntarily downing 'Michael's Secret Stuff'. (They didn't know it was just tap water, did they?)

But nevertheless, during this festive period, when we are all told endlessly to be grateful and to express our appreciation for the little things, let us all just take a moment to thank City for their sudden bout of relative ineptitude - and the novelty of a multi-faceted title race it brings. In all likelihood, Guardiola's men will return from their Saudi Arabian sojourn at the FIFA Club World Cup and proceed to kneecap everybody who dares to stray across their path, but for now, at least, the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool, and to an extent, Aston Villa and Tottenham will be quietly hoping that this might finally be the campaign during which City's monster truck tires wobble and detach.

And finally, in the span of a month or so, Everton have soundly devoured the 10-point deduction recently bestowed upon them by the Premier League, and moved themselves clear of the relegation zone as a consequence. Sean Dyche's side made it four top flight wins on the bounce with a 2-0 victory over Burnley on Saturday evening, and were it not for their aforementioned penalisation, the Blues would be very much in the running for a European qualification spot this season.

As things stand, however, they will still be delighted with the progress they have made in recent weeks, although, that being said, with Dyche at their helm should we be remotely surprised by their escapologist transmutation? This is, after all, a man who willingly thrives in the face of enforced disadvantage; who has a perfectly fine head of hair and yet still chooses to take a disposable razor to it once a fortnight just to be bald for the hell of it, who has seemingly been suffering from a case of acute laryngitis since hitting puberty, but who still chose to pursue a career path that requires good verbal communication as one of its central-most skills.

But Dyche does not care for such petty setbacks. Give him a 10-point deduction and he'll tell you it should have been 20, sunshine. Give him a Dwight McNeil and he'll turn him into the second coming of Pavel Nedved. Just how far Everton can ride the crest of this wave over the coming weeks and months remains to be seen, but at the present in moment in time, it feels like we can suggest, with a relative degree of certainty, that they won't be in a relegation battle.