Ben Godfrey believes his teammates have set the benchmark of what is expected in an Everton shirt following a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Manchester City on New Year's Eve.

Demarai Gray's sensational strike cancelled out Erling Haaland's first-half opener as the Blues left the home of the defending champions with a deserved point.

It was a commanding performance from Godfrey who completed his first 90 minutes in the Premier League this season after overcoming a fractured fibula on the opening day of the campaign.

The defender described the result as 'massive' but insisted the squad must replicate their effort consistently in 2023.

"I think we showed our character today," the 24-year-old said. "We've always had team spirit.

"The Boxing Day result was upsetting. To concede so late on was never nice. That highlights our character to have such a disappointing result then come to a place like City and get a result.

"That's the standard: work-rate and togetherness. It feels good to get a point."

Godfrey shined in the Everton backline, limiting City to two shots on target and largely frustrated Norwegian striker Haaland.

The Blues centre-half said he enjoyed the battle and hopes he can learn from the experience.

"It's always going to be tough. I don't need to tell you Erling Haaland's a good player. I just had to do my job," he added.

"He got his goal and is always causing people problems and it's those challenges you have to look forward to."

While Gray's equaliser sent Evertonians into jubilation, it came to no surprise for Godfrey who said he sees that quality on a daily basis.

"You come here and give yourself a chance to score and we did that. I've seen [Demarai Gray] do that day-in, day-out in training. It's nothing less than he deserved.

"To be 1-0 down at half-time it's easy to let that get to you but we knew we would get a chance. We'll take the point."