“Feed the Yak and he will score,” the locals sang as they streamed out along Gwladys Street at the conclusion of a draw that was just about satisfactory to both parties for different reasons. However, when they return for the visit of Aston Villa in three weeks the Everton fans should not expect a feeding frenzy.

Yakubu Ayegbeni ended a spell of ten matches without a goal by scoring the equaliser against his old club, but then missed several good chances that would have brought Everton a fourth successive win and left them closing in on the top four.

For much of the match the Evertonians’ favourite ditty was sung in hope rather than expectation. For such a powerful, predatory beast, Yakubu seems to feed only sporadically, making for a frustrating spectacle for the big-game hunters who return week after week to watch him safari, never mind the Goodison Park ranger, David Moyes.

Yakubu shot tamely at Ross Turnbull in the thirteenth minute and had a half-hearted appeal for a penalty turned down after tangling with the Middlesbrough goalkeeper later in the first half before finally getting on the scoresheet in an unconvincing fashion in the second, Mikel Arteta’s free kick deflecting in off his back in the 66th minute. Yakubu looked almost embarrassed at scoring in such a manner, but Moyes was not complaining.

“I’m pleased Yak finally scored, as he’s a striker and they enjoy scoring goals,” he said. “He had a good chance in the first half, but couldn’t take advantage. It was important for him to score. It doesn’t matter how they come. It was off his backside today, but they all count. Yak and Louis [Saha] looked a lot sharper and it was a much better performance.”

Moyes’s pleasure at Everton’s performance was offset by his frustration at taking a single point, as the home side dominated after falling behind to Gary O’Neil’s strike in the eighth minute, an unfortunate goal to concede as Phil Jagielka’s excellent tackle on Tuncay Sanli fell to Stewart Downing, who showed impressive composure to find his teammate on the edge of the area. Marouane Fellaini had a shot cleared off the line by Emanuel Pogatetz but the best chance inevitably fell to Yakubu late in the second half, with his shot from an acute angle almost going on to hit the corner flag.

Moyes’s frustration was increased by a foot injury to Tim Cahill that is unlikely to be improved by a flight to Sydney today for Australia’s World Cup qualifier against Bahrain, while Jagielka’s continued omission from the England squad is also vexing the Scotsman.

“It’s hard enough picking the Everton team, never mind the England team, but he had a great game and has been playing very well, consistently,” Moyes said. “He’s playing at the same level as when he was picked last season so maybe he’ll get back in.”

Gareth Southgate, on the other hand, was delighted at a result that vindicated his counter-attacking approach while extending Middlesbrough’s unbeaten run to five matches since they were hammered 5-0 at home by Chelsea last month.

“The Chelsea game was very important for us,” Southgate said. “It showed us how the very best do things and the standards we have to aspire to.

“We’ve taken eight points from our last four away games and are five matches unbeaten, which I’m told is the best in the country, which tells you something about the league at the moment.”

In such competitive surroundings, both these sides will have to continue to fight for all their worth to finish anything other than mid-table.

Everton ratings

4-4-2 T Howard 5 P Neville 6 J Yobo 5 P Jagielka 7 J Lescott 6 L Osman 6 T Cahill 6 M Fellaini 6 M Arteta 7 L Saha 6 Yakubu Ayegbeni 6 Substitutes: S Pienaar (for Osman, 73min); V Anichebe (for Cahill, 86); J Vaughan (for Yakubu, 88). Not used: C Nash, T Hibbert, L Baines, S Castillo. Next: Wigan (a).

Middlesbro ratings

4-4-2 R Turnbull 6 J Hoyte 5 C Riggott 5 E Pogatetz 6 A Taylor 6 G O’Neil 5 D Digard 6 Tuncay Sanli 6 J Arca 6 S Downing 7 Afonso Alves 6 Substitutes: D Wheater 6 (for Riggott, 52min); A Johnson 6 (for Arca, 69); M Emnes (for Afonso, 84). Not used: J Grounds, B Jones, J Franks, J Walker. Next: Bolton (h). Referee M Halsey Attendance 31,063 Capello watch

Phil Jagielka unwittingly contributed to Middlesbrough’s opener, but was generally defensively sound, which led David Moyes to champion his international credentials. Stewart Downing continued his return to form by creating the goal for Gary O’Neil.