Thursday's draw leaves City second in the standings, four points behind leaders Arsenal at the halfway point of the season. Coach Pep Guardiola had hoped for a better return from his attacking players, who struck the woodwork and had a goal disallowed for offside.
"Tough place to come," he told the BBC. "The amount of chances we missed in the six-yard box, not difficult ones, (but) we could not convert. We didn't do what we talked about in the first half, but in general it was a really good game."
City tried everything to break Sunderland's resistance, from firing crosses from the wings to intricate build-ups through the middle, but Sunderland matched them with a defensive intensity that was enough to keep a clean sheet, despite being under the cosh for most of the second half.
"To break the lines, have the composure to break them, it was better (in the) second half, the guys did everything," Guardiola explained. "They are a bit heads-down, but we have to be heads up because in three days we have a difficult game against Chelsea."
Sunderland's fans played their part, roaring their team on throughout, and defender Trai Hume paid tribute to them after the final whistle.
"Every time we play at our home, the fans are incredible. They're our 12th man, and I think you can see that from our performances and how our home record is this season," he said.
"They always push us. We make it tough for opposition teams coming here, so we need to keep it that way."