"Toffees soar out of relegation zone with a 3-0 victory over Newcastle: Player ratings revealed"

On Thursday night, Everton clinidged a 3-0 win against a fatigued Newcastle United in the Premier League, catapulting out of the relegation zone.

Both teams put on a bleak show, one that was sorely lacking in quality, after demonstrating determination under demanding circumstances recently. It was apt that such an underwhelming event was decided by two blatant mistakes.

Two goals for an unproductive Everton were handed on a silver platter by Newcastle's Kieran Trippier, and the third goal was courtesy of Beto, who was brought on as a substitute.

Everton, with this scrappy victory, has surpassed Luton Town and sits at 17th place. Absent the club's ten-point deduction, Everton would be positioned above Chelsea in the top half of the table.

With the spirited Goodison Park crowd behind them, Everton started strong, firing six shots in the first eight minutes. Altough none of these initial shots were on target, Dominic Calvert-Lewin managed to force Martin Dubravka - the stand-in for the injured Nick Pope - to twice defend from close range.

Calvert-Lewin’s attempt at goal towards the end of the first half went unnoticed as he turned and shot within Newcastle's six-yard box after a set piece. He embarrassingly missed his volley not realising how much time and space he had.

A desperate look for an offside call that did not come was the only comfort for players who had underperformed. Newcastle were equally unproductive with their occasional chances at the goal. On his return to Merseyside, former Everton player Anthony Gordon sadly missed a series of chances.

Trippier's performance, which was solid during the first half, declined dramatically under Everton’s pressure and he was forced into two mistakes. In the aftermath, Dwight McNeil managed to score on Everton's 18th attempt, finally breaking the deadlock. Doubling Everton's lead, McNeil set up Abdoulaye Doucoure who scored in the 86th minute.

Newcastle were let down by their drained and injury-laden squad as they couldn’t keep up with Eddie Howe's demanding strategy. Beto came off the bench, dodged the weary Newcastle players and sealed the deal in the sixth minute of stoppage time as Everton finally found their attacking form.