Manchester City's goalless draw against Aston Villa could prove to be a costly result in the Premier League title race, according to Sky Sports football pundit Graeme Souness.
City dropped points for the fourth time this season after failing to crack a stubborn Villa defence marshalled by former centre-back Micah Richards, whose side held on for their first point under new manager Remi Garde.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Souness said City failed to take the initiative in the first half and paid the price in the second, as bottom-of-the-table Villa grew in confidence and earned the draw.
When asked whether Sunday's result could prove costly come the end of the season, Souness said: "Definitely, I tipped City to win this league, I think they have the best group.
"The last game we did at Old Trafford they allowed themselves at half-time to get into the armchair and say, 'OK, we will not lose this game.' They made no attempt to get onto the front foot.
"Today I think you saw a team that didn't start right. Football is not a light switch you can flick on and off when you decide to go for it, it doesn't work like that. For me, City should have been at it from the first minute, [they should have] got Villa feeling worried and sorry for themselves again, got themselves in front and then eased up a bit.
"But to say at half-time, 'We are going to really have a go now', the initiative had been transferred to Villa by that time."
City were once again without striker Sergio Aguero, but Sky Sports' Thierry Henry said the absence of the Argentina international cannot be used as an excuse despite the missed chances.
"Overall I thought the play from City was very lethargic," Henry said. "They were not at it, you can complain and say maybe if Aguero was there, he would have finished, but he wasn't. You need to be able to do that without him sometimes, and they did not manage to do that.
"It wasn't good enough for City to win the game against a team that was well organised. I know people will say at the end they [Villa] were kind of lucky, but when you work really hard as a team luck goes your way."
Villa ended a run of six consecutive defeats in all competitions, picking up their first point in the Premier League since August, and Souness saw signs of improvement in Garde's first game in charge.
"They were organised and difficult to play against," Souness continued. "They didn't allow anything to go through them, and they kept the ball in front of them. But I think you have to factor in that City were not at it in those first 45 minutes.
"Villa were the nervous team going into the game, bottom of the league and they were not scoring goals. They will take a great deal from this match. They got a wee bit lucky at times, I'm thinking of the header from Sterling especially, which hit the 'keeper on the head and he knew nothing about it.
"I think the manager [Garde] deserves credit. Having had only three or four days to work with them, he's got a response."