Dominant Everton Banish Their Villa Park Blues

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Aston Villa 1 - 3 Everton

They say in football that you should "never go back", but if there is one player who provides the exception that proves the rule, it's Steven Pienaar. Frozen out and miserable at Tottenham just eight months ago, in tears three-and-a-half months later at the thought of not being able to stay at Goodison Park after a glorious return to Everton on loan from White Hart Lane, he is back with the Blues for good and is playing like he never left.

Everton ended what had, at one stage, promised to be a hugely disappointing 2011-12 season with an impressive run of results and, with the possible exception of Nikica Jelavic, no one could claim to have been more integral to that top-four form than Pienaar. Indeed, no Evertonian really wanted last season to end and, on the evidence of two games into the new season, Blues fans needn't have been concerned by the disruption of the close season or the painfully protracted negotiations to bring the South African home.

Fresh from ruining Sky Sports' and Manchester United's opening day party on Monday, Pienaar and the Blues swaggered down the M6 and took a little over two minutes to begin destroying Paul Lambert's home debut as the new Aston Villa manager.

The Scot had barely had time to warm his seat before a lovely interchange in midfield ended with Pienaar curling a beautiful shot into the far corner of Shay Given's net from 20 yards. Darron Gibson, and full-debutant Steven Naismith were both involved in a quick one-touch move just outside the Villa area that led to the Scot laying it back to Pienaar to artfully pick his spot.

It was the perfect start for a club that had won just once at Villa Park in the Premier League era and it allowed the Blues to take a stranglehold on proceedings with what was, for the bulk of this game, a devastatingly effective midfield display.

Though Marouane Fellaini was nominally the man deployed behind Jelavic in the "Tim Cahill role" — that term will be short-lived if the Belgian Beast keeps up this form — in truth there was an impressive fluidity to Everton that saw all of Fellaini, Pienaar, Naismith, and, to a lesser extent, Leon Osman easing in and out of forward and wide positions interchangeably.

If any of that quartet of attacking midfielders spent more time playing off the striker, particularly in the first half, it was the lively Naismith but it was Fellaini who popped up in the striker's role after half an hour to double the Blues' lead.

As if to underscore the versatility in Moyes's team, it was centre half Phil Jagielka who romped down the right flank on the overlap to collect Pienaar's return pass and pick out the Belgian's unmistakeable mop with a wicked cross. Given looked to have got behind the ball sufficiently to stop Fellaini's downward header but he allowed it to squirm off his gloves and into the net instead. 2-0 and Everton were firmly in control.

There have been enough topsy-turvy, goal-laden encounters between these two teams in recent seasons for the Blues to know not to ease up. Jelavic had twice headed over and Gibson had dropped a 25-yard half-volley a foot over the bar by the time Fellaini had doubled the lead, and while a couple more very promising situations were wasted when Villa were caught short on numbers at the back, the game-killing third did arrive just before the half-time interval.

Baines and Fellaini combined nicely down the left, with the former latching onto the latter's through-ball in typical fashion before cutting it back invitingly for Jelavic who had peeled instinctively into space in front of the home defence. Just like 27 times before today, the clinical Croatian despatched the ball into the goal with his first touch, tucking it inside the near post.

Lambert was, no doubt, stone-faced on the Villa bench with storm clouds gathering above him and little positive to point to until Barry Bannan unloaded with his side's first shot on target in first-half stoppage time, one that Tim Howard gathered comfortably.

3-0 was almost 4-0 inside two minutes of start of the second half when Jelavic was denied by a lunging block by Baker after Fellaini had flicked Pienaar's cross on to the back post. Moyes's side's momentum appeared initially undiminished by half time and they didn't need the additional advantage that would arrive just before the hour mark with Ciaran Clark's professional foul on Nikica Jelavic.

Referee Michael Oliver had no option but to show the defender a straight red card and it was clear at that stage the game really was up.

Still, Gibson dinked the resulting direct free kick inches over the bar and Pienaar was denied by a reflex save by Given a few minutes later after Karim El Ahmadi had escaped a yellow card despite blatant shirt-tugging near the touchline. Sylvain Distin met the ensuing corner with a towering header but Darren Bent was on hand to deny the Frenchman by heading off his goalline.

Not surprisingly, the pressure from the visitors began to ease in the last third of the game. Naismith was withdrawn after an impressive debut in favour of Seamus Coleman and he was followed to the dugout with 19 minutes left by Gibson who was replaced by another new boy, Kevin Mirallas.

And the two substitutes almost combined to provide a goal with Mirallas' first touch but Matthew Lowton's outstretched leg diverted the ball behind and away from the Belgian forward who was in acres of space near the penalty spot.

Mirallas would later have a goalbound shot blocked by Ron Vlaar and a goal ruled out by a very narrow offside decision but that was either side of El Ahmadi ruining Tim Howard's clean sheet with an impressive 25 yard strike that embarrassed the American 'keeper as it swerved in flight and away from his outstretched fingers. It was a minor blemish on an otherwise superb day, one that Everton closed out in typically efficient fashion.

So, back-to-back wins to start the season for the first time in five years has got Evertonians humming with expectation but they will mindful of getting too over-excited at this early stage. The return to the Midlands next weekend promises to be a tougher prospect than a Villa side still finding its feet under new management. West Bromwich Albion under Steve Clark have comprehensively beaten Liverpool and denied Tottenham three points at White Hart Lane so far and in Romelu Lukaku they have a dangerous striker who will need to be watched.

What will make Moyes confident, though, is the impressive manner in which his side came away from home and comprehensively beat Villa on their own turf with some scintiallating football. In addition to their customary tenacity and harrying in midfield, the Blues exhibited some wonderful usage of the ball; from quick, one-touch interchanges to raking balls over the top or pin-point cross-field balls to keep Villa chasing shadows for the much of the afternoon.

Lambert's side did enjoy a few spells of superiority but they were kept at bay — Andreas Weimann's last-minute strike that hit the post aside — by a side that looks to already be in the kind of groove that will grind out results against any level of opposition. Keep that up, hopefully add a key signing or two before the transfer deadline, get some luck on the injury front and this could be a very exciting season.

Player Ratings: Howard 6, Neville 7, Jagielka 8, Distin 8, Baines 8, Gibson 8 (Mirallas 7), Naismith 8 (Coleman 7), Osman 7, Pienaar 8*, Fellaini 8, Jelavic 8 (Heitinga -)

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