Sunderland kept their unbeaten home run in the Premier League alive, making it 10 games without a loss, after a 0-0 draw with Manchester City.

The match at the Stadium of Light had plenty of energy. Both teams had their moments to threaten but just couldn’t find the breakthrough. Bernardo Silva thought he’d scored early on, but the flag went up for offside. Brian Brobbey and Erling Haaland both forced saves before halftime. Trai Hume sent a header over the bar right before the break, and in the second half, Savinho and Eliezer Mayenda both came close. Then, with 16 minutes left, Josko Gvardiol hit the post. So close, but still no goals.

In the end, City walked away four points behind Arsenal at the top, while Sunderland held on to seventh place.

Over in west London, Thomas Frank’s return to Brentford didn’t exactly go as he’d hoped. Tottenham and Brentford played out a dull 0-0 draw at the Gtech Stadium. Frank, who spent seven years and a promotion with the Bees, came back for the first time since leaving for Spurs in the summer. The fans gave him a warm welcome, but the game was a slog. Tottenham didn’t even manage a shot on target until stoppage time. The home fans made their feelings clear, chanting “boring, boring Tottenham” as the match fizzled out.

Brentford thought they’d scored just four minutes in—Nathan Collins saw his header saved, and Kevin Schade put in the rebound, but he was offside. Tottenham could’ve nicked it at the end, but Richarlison’s shot was weak and straight at keeper Caoimhin Kelleher.

At Selhurst Park, Crystal Palace’s winless streak grew to six games after a 1-1 draw with Fulham. Palace wanted to avoid a fourth straight league defeat, and Jean-Philippe Mateta gave them hope with a goal in the 39th minute. Fulham hit the post through Raul Jimenez, then Palace’s Maxence Lacroix watched Bernd Leno tip his header onto the bar.

But with 10 minutes left, Tom Cairney struck from the edge of the box to level things for Fulham. In stoppage time, Dean Henderson pulled off a brilliant one-handed save to deny Timothy Castagne, making sure Palace at least held on for the point.

It's tough to say how the 2025/26 team will stack up against Pep Guardiola's other squads from his decade at the Etihad. They've shown a lot of potential six months into the season, but trophies aren't a sure thing yet.

Still, December 2025 definitely stands out as a crazy good month in Guardiola's 95-month tenure. It's not just that the Blues are doing well in the Premier League and Champions League, but where they got those wins.

Winning at Fulham, Real Madrid, Crystal Palace, and Nottingham Forest in a single month is quite the feat. Craven Cottage might not be the scariest place, but it's a long trip for a midweek game. Plus, the other three teams have been a pain for City in recent years.

Guardiola might not be thrilled with how they won—he wants them to be consistent for the entire match and for his young players to really show who they are all the time. But getting wins at those stadiums will help his players learn as they go. Once you’ve won at the Bernabeu, not many places can intimidate you, and the Forest win was huge because City lost there badly nine months prior.

City has totally answered questions about their away game performance this season. They lost three of their four league games—against Brighton, Villa, and Newcastle—on the road. They also messed up at Monaco in the Champions League after a bad second half when they should have won. Erling Haaland was mad and stormed off after the final whistle.

Those worries are gone after a month that was one of City's best ever away from home, statistically speaking. The last time City won all their away games in a month was in early 2024/25. Before that, you’d have to go back almost two years to February 2024 to find a month where they won four.

That February 2024 team was on its way to winning a fourth straight Premier League title and reaching the FA Cup Final. Before that, it was December 2021. City never won four away games in a month during their treble season, for instance.

Part of that is just how the schedule works—there aren't always four away games in a month. And once April and May roll around, if City is still in the FA Cup, they play at a neutral site. Still, it's amazing how good their December was, picking up so many good results from tough places.

That changes things as they head into another tough month with four more away games. They're at Sunderland on New Year's Day (who haven't lost at home in the Premier League this season), then at Newcastle for the first leg of their league cup semi-final, knowing they lost there recently and haven't won there in two years.

A few days later, it's the Manchester derby, followed by a trip to Bodo as they try to finish in the top eight in the first stage of the Champions League. City has done pretty well at Old Trafford lately, but derbies are always tense. And a plastic field in the Arctic Circle doesn't sound easy.

But City can go into these games feeling more confident after the December they just had. No matter how much the home teams try to rattle them, Guardiola’s improving squad has proven they can get results anywhere. They’ll see the first game of the year in the Northeast as a chance to really show what they want to accomplish in 2026.