Everton comfortably beat a weakened Stoke City with three first half goals to move up to seventh in the Premier League, on a wet and windy afternoon at the Britannia.
Toffee striker Romelu Lukaku opened the scoring through a penalty early on before Seamus Coleman headed home a corner on the half hour mark.
After seemingly recovering Mark Hughes's side were dealt a final blow as Aaron Lennon intercepted a dodgy pass before sprinting towards Jack Butland and firing past the goalkeeper.
The Potters were lucky to keep the scoreline at just three as Butland was their star man, denying the away side a host of chances.
Lukaku leading the way
The first goal of the game came through a penalty in the 11th minute thanks to Tom Cleverley drawing the Stoke 'keeper out of his net. Lukaku was the man to step up, sending Butland the wrong way to start his side's masterclass.
The Belgium international was a constant handful for defenders Marco Muniesa and Phillip Wollschied, holding the ball up well for his side and bringing his teammates into play.
Roberto Martinez's use of the striker as the figurehead in his formation paid off as his goal seemingly rejuvenated the player's confidence as he almost put the game to bed in the second half; he headed from close range but Butland tipped it onto the crossbar.
Ross Barkley linked up well with the forward and the two young players looked for a string of neat passes before the midfielder's shot was blocked.
With 20 goals across all competitions this season, Lukaku is rewarding his manager' faith and more. He is closing in at the top of the Premier League scoring list this season with 16 league goals.
Brilliant Butland
In a game of few positives for the Potters should be thankful for their man between the sticks, who stopped the deficit becoming laughable as the away side dominated.
Despite conceding a penalty thanks to a clumsy challenge, the English 'keeper should hold his head up high as a string of saves offered something for the home fans to cheer.
A fingertip save from striker Lukaku kept the scoreline at three, as a stop from just five yards out gave his teammates something to fight for in the match.
Substitute Arouna Kone looked to put the game to bed as he was teed up expertly by Barkley before racing clear of the Stoke defence but Butland made himself big and managed to block the 32-year-old's effort with an outstretched leg.
Everton attacking
The Toffees are racking up the goals as of late with nine goals in their past three games in all competitions, to give hope to Martinez after recent calls for his resignation.
A Coleman header looked to give Everton the advantage when a Cleverley corner, largely thanks to the windy conditions. was headed home by the Republic of Ireland international as the home side's defence stood watching.
Lennon, however, scored the pick of the bunch as he raced away past three Stoke defenders after he latched on to a loose ball. tHe winger blitzed his way towards goal before slotting coolly past the keeper.
The 28-year-old Former Tottenham Hotspur star was the most exciting player on the afternoon as his silky footwork and blistering pace was too much for Hughes' side to handle; he shimmied his way into dangerous positions often.
Stoke should have followed the example set by the visitors as the home side threw many crosses into the box despite having creative players Xherdan Shaqiri and Mame Biram Diouf as targets.
Peter Crouch did not make it off the bench despite the game looking to suit his towering height well. Joselu was brought on too late to have any impact on the game. Full-back Eric Pieters had a terrific attacking game with the defender often the main distributor to the forward line, but with nothing to aim for his crosses came to little.
New signing Gianneli Imbula had little impact on the match up, often looking lost in the midfield. The record transfer at the Britannia did, however, have one attempt on goal late on in the first half but his shot sailed high over the bar.
Losing Habit
Hughes will be beginning to accept defeat as his side fell to a third successive Premier League 3-0 defeat to give the Welshman a major headache.
The last win for the Potters came on 13 January as they defeated lowly Norwich City and looked on course for a European spot. Now, in poor form, they look firmly set to remain a mid-table side and sit in 11th place.
Everton came to the Britannia fresh off a 3-0 victory in their last game against Newcastle United as history repeated itself this afternoon. The Toffees are beginning to find their rhythm after a stop-start season. The Merseyside club have leapfrogged their city rivals Liverpool to sit in seventh, just five points behind fifth placed Manchester United.
With their tough run now easing the next three fixtures will be crucial if he is to salvage anything from this season. Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Newcastle are up next and anything but maximum points will likely rule out a Europa League spot.