Referee Martin Atkinson rightly waved away the home appeals but, on the half-hour, adjudged Carlos Cuellar to have fouled Tim Cahill on the left flank for a free-kick from which Everton scored their first equaliser.

Arteta’s inswinging delivery was flicked on by Osman and, with Villa slow to react, Lescott nipped in to force the ball past Freidel off his knee. For Lescott, a self-confessed Villa fan as a youngster, it was the ideal way to celebrate his 350th club career appearance.

And Everton should have been ahead by the interval. Anichebe swivelled 12 yards out for a shot that was safely guarded by Friedel, Cuellar cleared a Fellaini header off the line from Arteta’s corner while Osman was wasteful when volleying an inviting dropping ball well off target.

The second half began in the same vein, Friedel pawing yet another Fellaini header on to the crossbar after another dangerous Arteta corner.

So it was completely against the run of play when Villa went ahead again on 54 minutes when Jagielka’s dreadful mistake allowed Ashley Young the chance to finish neatly past Howard.

Everton had stronger claims for a penalty shortly afterwards when, challenging with Anichebe inside the area, Curtis Davies cleared the ball against his own arm.

Referee Atkinson waved play on, and in truth it would have been a harsh call.

Joseph Yobo sent a header wide from an Osman corner late on but Everton appeared to be running out of ideas with Villa defending resolutely.

Then came the late drama.

In the final of three minutes allotted injury time, Everton kept the ball alive from a corner and, after Osman had floated a cross to the far post, Jagielka headed across goal, Cahill helped the ball on and Lescott twisted his frame to send a brilliant improvised volley past Friedel.

That should have been that. But, with home minds still on the equaliser, Arteta lost possession of the ball to Gabriel Agbonlahor who played in Ashley Young to race past Lescott and produce another wonderfully cool finish to beat Howard for the winner.

An Everton version of Monopoly may have been released this week, but Moyes’s men couldn’t get out of jail this time.