Everton claimed back-to-back away wins in the Premier League for the first time in two seasons this evening with a 2-1 victory over Newcastle United at St James' Park.

Leighton Baines and Victor Anichebe found the net after Papiss Cisse headed the Magpies into an early lead to move Everton into the top five.

Newcastle edged the possession and had more shots on goal during the 90 minutes, but do these statistics tell the whole story?

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the action.

Match statistics:

Newcastle:
Shots 14
On target 11
Possession 58%
Corners 4
Fouls 21

Everton:
Shots 7
On target 6
Possession 42%
Corners 6
Fouls 7

Was the result fair?

Just about. Although the stats suggest a dominant Newcastle, it was Everton who played some of the better football. Leighton Baines's strike was a masterclass in free kick taking and the Blues' second was the best move of the match.

Newcastle's performance

Alan Pardew can take some positives from this performance. The Magpies looked dangerous at times and dominated spells of the game. However, their failure to take the chances they created is what cost them the match.

Everton's performance

David Moyes's side got off to the worst possible start and it took them some time to settle, but once they did, they played some excellent football. Baines and Steven Pienaar were a threat as always and Anichebe's winner was a fine example of a great team goal.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Leighton Baines: The England international is arguably one of the best full-backs in the world, and he showed us why tonight. His 30-yard free kick is a contender for goal of the season and his creative play was Everton's greatest asset.

Biggest gaffe

A calamitous collision between Neville and Anichebe resulted in the former with blood seeping from his head and the latter with a near-concussion. Both soldiered on to the finish, though.

Referee performance

Martin Atkinson had a tough time out there with tempers flaring. He got Newcastle's penalty claim against Phil Neville right in the first half, but missed few clear-cut free kicks going both ways. Fortunately, none of these was game changers.

What next?

Newcastle: Newcastle travel to Brighton & Hove Albion for the third round of the FA Cup this weekend.

Everton: Everton are also in FA Cup action. They pay a visit to League Two side Cheltenham Town.

Written by
Mark Langshaw