Everton were held to a goalless draw by West Bromwich Albion to extend their winless run to eight matches in all competitions this evening.

The hosts had the clearest chance of the match when Joleon Lescott was penalised for a handball inside the box, but Kevin Mirallas missed the resulting spot kick having controversially taken it ahead of Leighton Baines.

The Belgian was hauled off by Roberto Martinez at half time having seemingly gone against team orders, but the Toffees still couldn't find a breakthrough in the second 45 minutes.

Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look into a frustrating evening for the home side at Goodison Park.

Match statistics

EVERTON
Shots: 17
On target: 4
Possession: 69%
Corners: 8
Fouls: 11

WEST BROM
Shots: 5
On target: 0
Possession: 31%
Corners: 1
Fouls: 12

Was the result fair?

Looking at the statistics, you would wonder exactly how West Brom got away with a point in this one. Everton had 17 shots and more than two-thirds of the possession, while the Baggies did not have a single effort on target and only managed one corner. However, perhaps the most telling stat is that Everton only managed four shots on target, and each one of those was comfortable for Ben Foster.

The Toffees dominated this game pretty much from start to finish, but they simply couldn't create a clear chance from open play. Of course, looking at the penalty, you could argue that they created one more goalscoring opening than the Baggies managed, but it is hard to begrudge the visitors a point considering how well they defended.

This was a clash of styles, and Everton had no way through Tony Pulis's defensive doggedness. It was not the prettiest game to watch and West Brom certainly parked the bus, but that is what Pulis is good at and his side executed his gameplan to perfection tonight, pulling off a very hard-fought draw.

Everton's performance

Exasperation, anxiety and anger all poured down from the stands of Goodison Park today, but the overriding emotion for the hosts will be one of frustration. The Toffees completely dominated this game in terms of possession and shots on goal, but the penalty was their only real chance of the entire 90 minutes.

While they enjoyed 69% of the ball, their passing at times did not help the restlessness of the crowd, particularly in the final third. It is always hard to play against a side that sticks 10 men behind the ball, but Everton did not make the most of some decent positions today. The penalty was the key moment in the game, and even at the time it felt like they had just squandered the best chance they'd have to win the match.

The final whistle was greeted by boos from the fans, while Martinez's decision to bring on Arouna Kone for Muhamed Besic 10 minutes from time also drew an angry reaction from supporters. There is growing discontent in the blue half of Merseyside, and they need to stop the rot soon if they are to salvage anything from their season.

West Brom's performance

If ever you wanted to sum up a Pulis performance, this was it. It was clear within 10 minutes which way the game was going to go as West Brom put 10 men behind the ball and refused to be dragged out of position despite Everton's best efforts. It was not at all pretty, but it was effective and the Baggies came away with a decent point.

They set up to frustrate Everton and did exactly that. Purists of the game may not like the tactics employed by Pulis, but it repeatedly works for him. The visitors defended brilliantly and put everything they had into the performance. That Foster only had four long-range efforts to save speaks volumes as to how well those in front of him played.

Of course, there was an element of luck involved with the missed penalty, but it is still another clean sheet for Pulis, making it three in three since he took over at the club. If he can carry on the way he has started, West Brom will be safe come the end of the season.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Claudio Yacob: This was a herculean defensive display by the whole West Brom team today, and Claudio Yacob typified that with his performance. Every one of the defenders deserves credit, but the protection afforded to the back four by Yacob was particularly impressive.

Biggest gaffe

No doubt about this one - Mirallas's decision to take the penalty off Baines was the big talking point of the game and it proved to be the difference between three points and one point for the hosts. It was a selfish decision from the Belgian, although it should also be noted that it wouldn't have been a talking point had he scored. Martinez has since played down the incident, insisting an injury was the reason behind his withdrawal at the break, but it was still a big error of judgement from the midfielder.

Referee performance

Those inside Goodison Park vented their frustrations at a number of targets today, and Michael Oliver was no exception. However, he got the penalty decision right and had a good game overall.

What next?

Everton: Having been eliminated from the FA Cup, Everton are not in action again until Saturday, January 31, when they face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

West Brom: The Baggies, meanwhile, will look to avoid an upset against Birmingham City at St Andrew's on Saturday.