English FA Premiership/ Aston Villa 4 Everton 0: This is a time of year traditionally associated with celebrations, though Milan Baros's merriment was not shared by Everton's travelling supporters.

The former Liverpool striker was fortunate not to earn a yellow card after he foolishly ran behind the goal in front of the visiting fans cupping a hand to his ear after giving Villa a controversial first-half lead.

Everton's supporters, who had taunted the Czech prior to the goal, responded to Baros's gesture with anger, throwing a variety of missiles at the Villa forward, though they might well have subjected similar abuse towards their own players after they capitulated embarrassingly in the second half, falling to a crushing 4-0 defeat for the second match in succession.

That Baros added a second goal late on only compounded the despair felt by Everton fans who have watched a season that began with Champions League ambitions disintegrate into a battle for Premiership survival.

Everton's humiliation was augmented by the fact that Villa had failed to win in any of their previous four matches, though they hardly looked a side shorn of confidence last night. Even Mark Delaney, who had not scored for six years, breached the porous Everton rearguard as Per Kroldrup, making his first appearance for the visitors since signing for £5 million from Udinese in the summer, endured a baptism that he will want to forget.

The Denmark international had already been caught out when Baros gave Villa the lead 11 minutes before the interval in controversial circumstances. Having riled Everton fans with his propensity to fall to the ground too easily, he handled the ball before hooking a shot from inside the six-yard box over the head of Nigel Martyn, though Mike Riley waved away Everton's appeals.

Baros had proved a point, albeit illegitimately, though James Beattie was unable to do likewise at the other end. The former England forward turned down the chance to join Villa when he signed for Everton last January, apparently to the relief of Doug Ellis, who wrote in his autobiography: "I had done my homework and I was never convinced about Beattie."

Those words might have been ringing in Ellis's ears had Beattie taken one of three first-half chances. The pick of them arrived after 18 minutes when the striker glanced a near-post header over the bar.

It was at that same end three minutes after the restart that Delaney nipped in front of Tony Hibbert to flick a volley past Martyn from Milner's near-post corner. The goal deflated Everton who never recovered as Villa attacked with renewed belief. Baros was twice denied, first when Kroldrup blocked and then by Martyn, before Juan Pablo Angel added a sublime third.

The Colombian, a peripheral figure for much of the season, swapped passes with Baros before planting a low shot under Martyn. The Everton goalkeeper was left similarly exposed a minute later when Aaron Hughes's curling cross was turned in with aplomb by Baros, who this time celebrated with a touch more restraint.

* Guardian Service