Everton vs Newcastle player ratings: Was Ross Barkley the Toffees' main man?

Everton 3 Newcastle United 0

(Getty)

Ross Barkley struck twice from the spot to condemn ten-man Newcastle to defeat at Goodison Park, a result that leaves Steve McClaren’s side two points from safety in the Premier League.

Aaron Lennon’s sweetly struck 23rd minute goal set Everton on the way to a first win in front of their own fans since November 21st, when Roberto Martinez’s side thumped Aston Villa 4-0.

The victory will relieve some of the pressure that was building on the Toffees’ Spanish boss, while McClaren, who handed a debut to Andros Townsend, is in desperate need of a result when Newcastle host West Brom on Saturday.

The Toffees’ breakthrough arrived when Bryan Oviedo picked out Tom Cleverley’s marauding run forward. Georginio Wijnaldum’s flaky attempt at intercepting the ex-Manchester United man’s low centre wasn’t enough to stop the ball running for Lennon, who took a touch with his left-foot, before swivelling to crash right-footed into Rob Elliot’s bottom right corner.

Elliot pawed a Barkley piledriver onto the bar after the interval, while Newcastle’s best chance went begging when substitute Aleksandar Mitrovic spooned off-target from Moussa Sissoko’s inswinging left-sided delivery.

Another Newcastle sub, Rolando Aarons, was the culprit when Lennon was upended in the box with two minutes to play.

See below for our take on who stood out at Goodison...

Barkley dispatched the resultant penalty, before picking himself up to repeat the trick deep into stoppage time, after being felled by Jamaal Lascelles, who saw a straight red for his indiscretion.