Leighton Baines struck a late penalty as injury-hit Everton denied troubled Aston Villa a much-needed win in the Barclays Premier League this afternoon.

England striker Darren Bent appeared to have put relegation-threatened Villa - and their under-pressure manager Gerard Houllier - on course for three vital points at Goodison Park when he responded to Leon Osman's opener with a second-half double.

But Everton, who were aggrieved when Jermaine Beckford was not awarded a goal after a shot bounced down off the bar, battled on and won a spot-kick when Jean Makoun tripped Phil Jagielka.

The draw was no more than Everton deserved after dictating the play for most of the game despite missing several big names and being relatively secure in mid-table.

Villa, by contrast, were sluggish for large periods and the future of Houllier's regime remains uncertain.

The visitors could maybe even consider themselves fortunate as, apart from Beckford's effort, Osman missed a host of chances to increase Everton's tally.

Everton, already without the likes of Louis Saha, Marouane Fellaini and Mikel Arteta, had managed to field a familiar starting line-up despite the failure of Tim Cahill and Jack Rodwell to prove their fitness.

Beyond that, however, the thinness of their resources was apparent as manager David Moyes named seven substitutes with not a single minute's Premier League experience between them.

Villa welcomed back central defenders Richard Dunne and James Collins while Gabriel Agbonlahor and Luke Young also featured.

Stewart Downing had Villa's first chance when he skipped into the area after a strong run down the right but John Heitinga twice blocked.