Newcastle United 3-2 Everton

Ayoze Perez signed for the Magpies for only £1.5m in the summer

• Ayoze Perez continues great scoring form

• Papiss Cisse scores his fifth goal in six league games

• Arouna Kone grabs his first goal for Everton

• Everton with one win in seven league games

Newcastle recorded their first league win in four games as they beat out-of-form Everton at St James' Park.

It was the Toffees' fourth league loss in five matches, although they made the ideal start when Arouna Kone fired in.

Papiss Cisse swept home to level from Mike Williamson's pull-back, before Ayoze Perez drove in from 18 yards.

Jack Colback then pounced on Ross Barkley's mistake to poke home the third before Kevin Mirallas set up a tense finale with a clipped finish.

That is now only one league victory in seven for Everton and their third successive defeat. Bar the win over QPR, this month has been one to forget for manager Roberto Martinez.

The Spaniard's second season in charge of the Toffees has so far failed to match the high standards of the first, with the side 16 points worse off than they were at this stage last term.

Everton have problems all over the pitch. Only the Hoops have conceded more goals than them, while in attack the goals are not flowing. Striker Romelu Lukaku was a success last season while on loan, but since becoming a £28m permanent signing he has failed to rediscover that form.

The Belgian was demoted to the bench in one of seven changes made to the first XI by Martinez, with Kone and Samuel Eto'o starting.

And Kone, who was making his full debut for the visitors having missed 18 months with injury, repaid his manager's faith in him with his first goal for the club after just five minutes. The Ivory Coast striker drifted past his markers to convert from close range from Seamus Coleman's cross.

That was the 12th goal the Magpies had conceded in the last four league outings and at that stage the signs looked worrying for Alan Pardew's faltering side.

But the Newcastle manager has a potent duo up front - Cisse and Perez. It was the Senegal international who pulled the scores level shortly before the break, when he was in the right position to drive in after defender Williamson salvaged a ball that looked like it was going out of the play.

Perez - a revelation since his £1.5m move from Tenerife - then put Newcastle into the lead when he wriggled past his markers on the edge of the area before drilling a shot through the legs of Coleman and past keeper Joel Robles.

With a spring in their steps, the Magpies added a third when Colback scored his first goal for his boyhood club after Barkley's attempted clearance from Daryl Janmaat fell at the midfielder's feet.

Mirallas gave the visitors hope when he raced forward before placing his shot past Jak Alnwick, but Newcastle held on.

Newcastle assistant John Carver, who did the post-match conference:

"Alan [Pardew] didn't say why I was doing the press, he just told me to do the press.

"He's delighted with the win. We've had a run of games where we've not managed to win.

"This has been one of our best performances in recent times."

Everton manager Roberto Martinez:

"The form is concerning because we're not in a good moment in terms of being able to carry the suspensions and injuries.

"It seems that everything that could have gone against us in the last couple of games, it went wrong and you don't want that to creep in and create a bit of a negative momentum.

"If you look at the performance today, we had a really good start, the right approach we scored two very good goals from open play and the disappointment is that moment where we conceded the first goal."

It was a crisp winter's day at St James' Park

Everton's Arouna Kone nips in to score his first goal for the club

Newcastle striker Papiss Cisse levels with his fifth goal in his last six league games