*Everton drew a line under their recent travails with a hard-fought draw against Aston Villa as both teams finished the match with 10 men.*

Diniyar Bilyaletdinov drew first blood, stroking home for Everton after he was set up by Yakubu.

Substitute John Carew levelled after Tim Howard could only parry a stinging effort from Gabriel Agbonlahor.

A dramatic finale saw Bilyaletdinov sent off for a two-footed challenge before Carlos Cuellar likewise saw red.

The point provides a welcome respite for Everton manager David Moyes, for whom October has been the cruellest of months.

After stuttering badly last autumn, when they managed only one October victory, Everton have failed to register a single league win this time round, and had suffered three successive defeats in a torrid 10-day spell coming into the game.

The Merseysiders’ malaise has largely been down to the corrosive effect of injuries, with Phil Jagielka’s defensive obduracy and skipper Phil Neville’s leadership qualities missed as sorely as the creative impetus of Mikel Arteta and Steven Pienaar.

But the return of Russia international Bilyaletdinov, together with defensive duo Leighton Baines and Joseph Yobo, provided an infusion of fresh momentum that was enough to hold Villa to a third successive Premier League draw.

Perhaps suffering a physical hangover after their midweek Carling Cup encounter with Sunderland, which they won on penalties,
Villa failed to create enough in the final third and it required the half-time arrival of Carew, who has now scored in four successive league matches against the Toffees, to rescue a point.

String-puller-in-chief for Everton was Bilyaletdinov, whose sprightly creativity down their left flank found a natural outlet in the intelligent runs of Marouane Fellaini and prodigious work-rate of Yakubu.

Yet for all their early buoyancy, Everton struggled to break down a Villa defence expertly marshalled by James Collins and Goodison Park alumnus Richard Dunne.

A sliding tackle from Collins prevented Bilyaletdinov’s cross from reaching Fellaini at the near post before Brad Friedel was forced to palm over a Yakubu centre.

Villa responded with an Ashley Young free-kick that almost found Dunne in space at the far post, while efforts from Stephen Warnock and Emile Heskey whistled comfortably wide of Howard’s goal.

After an auspicious start, a fixture that traditionally delivers goals by the hatful was lurching into damp-squib territory.
But with the interval beckoning Everton launched a final attacking incursion down the left, Tim Cahill shaking off pressure from Dunne to put in an inviting centre.

A touch off Yakubu thwarted Collins’ hopes of clearing, and when the ball spun loose to Bilyaletdinov, the midfielder gleefully side-footed past Friedel for his second Premier League goal in as many games.

Martin O’Neill responded by introducing Carew as a half-time replacement for the injured James Milner, and the Norway international’s impact was instant.

Within a minute of the restart, Warnock’s probing cross found Agbonlahor in space at the back post, and although Howard got a glove to the striker’s stinging low drive, Carew was on hand to turn home the loose ball.

With Villa growing in authority and the match on a knife-edge, Moyes withdrew Fellaini in favour of top-scorer Louis Saha.
The Frenchman fired wide from range shortly after Warnock had denied Cahill with a fine aerial challenge, but a late flurry of drama saw both teams reduced to ten men.

Bilyaletdinov was given his marching orders for a two-footed challenge on Stilian Petrov before Cuellar, who had earlier entered Lee Probert’s book for a foul on Baines, received a second yellow card for upending Yakubu.

*Everton manager David Moyes:*

“I don’t think either goalkeeper had a great deal of saves to make.

“The teams are well matched, but we are not playing with a great deal of confidence. We are a little bit out of shape at the moment.

“I thought we nullified Aston Villa quite well but I didn’t think we were able to play our game because at this moment in time, without one or two players who might change things for us, it makes our set-up slightly different.

“I wanted us to keep a clean sheet more than anything today. I wanted us to not concede a goal and I thought if we could do that we could win the game.”

*Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill:*

“I think we coped reasonably well in the first half and so to concede in first-half stoppage time was particularly galling.

“We got back into it in the second half, and for a while I thought we might well go on to win it, but on reflection I think a draw is a fair result.

“It has never ever been an easy place to come, despite the fact that Everton are trying to eke out a victory at the moment - which they will get.

“They are as resilient as they come so I am pleased we got something out of the game.”