Arouna Kone scored a first Everton hat-trick as his side thrashed Sunderland.
The visitors twice hit the post early on but Everton went ahead when Kone played Gerard Deulofeu over the top before scoring the second himself.
Jermain Defoe's fine individual goal and Steven Fletcher's header levelled matters but three quick Everton goals changed the course of the game.
Sebastian Coates' own goal, Romelu Lukaku's solo effort and Kone's second arrived before he headed in late on.
It was a perfect response to those who had questioned Everton's home form after failing to win four of their last five games in the Premier League at Goodison.
And on a day when the club remembered former boss Howard Kendall, it proved a fitting tribute as Everton moved into eighth in the Premier League.
For Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce, a man who prides himself on clean sheets, his side's second-half capitulation shows there is plenty of work to do over the coming months as the Black Cats remain second from bottom.
Allardyce has work to do in defence
Following a 3-0 win against fellow strugglers Newcastle last weekend, Allardyce's decision to switch to a 3-5-2 system initially proved a positive one.
The manager deployed Patrick Van Aanholt and DeAndre Yedlin in the wing-back positions with Billy Jones, Coates and Wes Brown filling three centre-back roles.
Dutchman Van Aanholt, in particular, used his pace to be involved high up the pitch early on and struck the post after a smart one-two with Fletcher before leading another counter-attack which resulted in Adam Johnson hitting the same part of the woodwork.
But Van Aanholt was caught upfield when Kone lifted the ball over the top to Deulofeu, who scored his first goal since signing permanently for Everton.
Sunderland's back three also failed to step out and tackle Kone when he exchanged passes with Lukaku to score his first of three goals.
Despite the Black Cats getting themselves back into the game five minutes into the second half, three Everton goals in seven minutes effectively ended the contest.
Part of Sunderland's problem was the loss of defensive midfielder Lee Cattermole to injury shortly before half-time, exposing the visitors' defence and allowing Everton to take the initiative.
Deulofeu and Kone get Everton on track
Having started the season with games against several of last season's top eight, Everton now have a run of more favourable fixtures and will hope to improve their position in the table.
They will rarely be afforded the amount of space as they were in this encounter, but with games against West Ham, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace, Norwich, Leicester, Newcastle and Stoke in November and December, there is scope for Roberto Martinez's team to make headway.
With Phil Jagielka out injured, there were some defensive frailties as John Stones gifted the ball to Defoe before his shot took a deflection off the Everton defender, and Ramiro Funes Mori was easily beaten in the air by Fletcher.
However, Martinez will be buoyed by Kone's hat-trick given the Ivory Coast international has yet to make a telling impression since he left Wigan for £6m in July 2013, having spent much of the last two seasons injured. His appearance also triggered a new 12-month extension to his existing contract.
Deulofeu's calm finish and two assists was also a reminder of his talents, although an appalling second-half dive, which he was booked for, showed that the 21-year-old still has plenty to learn.
Man of the Match: Arouna Kone
Stats you need to know
- There were more goals scored in this fixture (8) than the last five top-tier clashes between Everton and Sunderland combined (7).
- Sunderland have failed to keep a clean sheet in 11 of their last 12 Premier League matches
- Arouna Kone became the fifth Ivorian to net a Premier League hat-trick (Aruna Dindane, Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou, Yaya Toure); more than any other African nation.
- Kone's hat-trick goal was the 300th scored in this season's Premier League.
- Jermain Defoe has scored in five of his last eight Premier League appearances at Goodison Park against Everton.
LINEUP, BOOKINGS (5) & SUBSTITUTIONS (6)
Everton
- 24 Howard
- 23 Coleman
- 05 Stones Booked
- 25 Funes Mori
- 08 Oviedo (Galloway - 25' Booked )
- 16 McCarthy
- 18 Barry
- 19 Deulofeu Booked (Mirallas - 65' )
- 20 Barkley
- 09 Koné
- 10 Lukaku (Osman - 78' )
Substitutes
- 01 Robles
- 04 Gibson
- 11 Mirallas
- 12 Lennon
- 14 Naismith
- 21 Osman
- 32 Galloway
Sunderland
- 01 Pantilimon
- 22 Coates
- 05 Brown
- 02 Jones
- 24 Yedlin (Larsson - 64' )
- 06 Cattermole (Rodwell - 38' Booked )
- 21 M'Vila
- 03 van Aanholt
- 11 Johnson
- 18 Defoe Booked
- 26 Fletcher (Watmore - 75' )
Substitutes
- 07 Larsson
- 08 Rodwell
- 14 Jordi Gómez
- 17 Lens
- 19 Graham
- 25 Mannone
- 41 Watmore
Ref: Andre Marriner
Att: 36,617
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