PAUL LAMBERT was so excited when Agbonlahor poked wide he bumped into the linesman.  He did a jig whenever Villa scored — and was doing as much running as his players.  Di Canio faced the stand with arms outstretched when Rose equalised. But it was a nice touch when he joined the 19th-minute applause for cancer-hit Stiliyan Petrov.  LAMBERT may not be as flamboyant as Di Canio but he is just as passionate and has always had belief in his young players. This game showed why.  Suited-and-booted Di Canio ignored the foul weather to kick every ball with his team.  It was a balance between getting his message over to the players and looking to the bench in exasperation when things did not go to plan.  VILLA fans are turning out in numbers for Lambert in the same way that they stayed at home when Alex McLeish and Gerard Houllier were in charge.  But there was no shortage of nerves until Villa found the net.  The home supporters let Di Canio know what they thought of him after his gestures at Swindon earlier this season.  Sunderland fans responded by backing their boss.  VILLA fans are turning out in numbers for Lambert in the same way that they stayed at home when Alex McLeish and Gerard Houllier were in charge.  But there was no shortage of nerves until Villa found the net.  The home supporters let Di Canio know what they thought of him after his gestures at Swindon earlier this season.  Sunderland fans responded by backing their boss.  Aston Villa picked the perfect time to regain their pride as they snarled their way to their biggest home win since they stuffed Wimbledon 7-1 here in 1995.  This devastating demolition must have sent shivers down their rivals’ spines as they eased themselves five points clear of Wigan to draw level on 37 points with Sunderland and Newcastle.  Although magnificent Matt Lowton led the way from the back, it was Belgian powerhouse Christian Benteke who proved himself the undisputed king of the relegation jungle with a stunning hat-trick.  Villa boss Lambert — a long-time disciple of Martin O’Neill — won his personal Di-Day Battle with Di Canio, the man who replaced O’Neill on Wearside.  The Italian talks a good game and had been hailed as a messiah after two wins. Di Canio claimed he would jump into the North Sea if Sunderland won again... to see if he could walk on water!  But on this form Sunderland are in deep water and look more likely to sink than swim. Their confidence must have taken a battering on a night when Villa fans taunted them with chants of “We’re Aston Villa, we’re taking the p***!”  Di Canio certainly looked a soggy mess in a suit as his side drowned in a deluge of goals.  BOSS Paul Lambert was thrilled with his side's 6-1 thrashing of Sunderland in Prem relegation battle  As the rain poured down, we were treated to an absolute belter of a basement battle as both sides gave it everything — and then a little more.  Not surprisingly there were jitters at the start and the first bit of class came from Di Canio.  The Sunderland boss remains Public Enemy No 1 with Villa fans after tipping them for the drop when he was at Swindon.  SUNDERLAND boss blasts Black Cats and believes they could now need four or five points to avoid the drop  But the Italian had the presence of mind, in the midst of the mayhem, to lead the customary 19th-minute applause for Stan Petrov.  It was a nice touch — something Gabby Agbonlahor wished he had shown seven minutes later when he should have given Villa the lead.  The former England forward did everything right when he played a fabulous one-two with Benteke and then another with the Belgian, who sent him sprinting clear in the box.  RON'S ROCKET ... Vlaar celebrates scoring his first ever goal for Villa  But with Simon Mignolet frozen in front of him, Agbonlahor’s final contact was a horrible scuff which spun agonisingly wide from nine yards with the goal at his mercy.  Sunderland had barely caught their breath when Villa got it right with a stunning 31st- minute opener.  Benteke and Ashley Westwood had shots charged down before the ball spun back to skipper ‘Concrete’ Ron Vlaar, who smashed it home.  COMEBACK ... Paolo Di Canio celebrating after Danny Rose scored the equaliser  The ball skidded off the turf from 35 yards, deflected off Carlos Cuellar and ripped into the net behind Mignolet.  As Lambert punched the air, Di Canio looked ready to punch anyone nearby as he spun away in disgust.  But 60 seconds later Di Canio was whirling round the technical area celebrating Sunderland’s equaliser.  MANN OF THE MOMENT ... Andreas Weimann put Villa ahead again  Danny Rose burst forward from defence and played wall-passes off Craig Gardner and Danny Graham before curling a left-footer beyond Brad Guzan into the far corner.  However, Lambert’s team of kids hit the front again after 38 minutes. The impressive Matt Lowton read Gardner’s crossfield ball and intercepted it with his chest.  He then showed his opponent how it should be done with a sweet switch to Andi Weimann.  The Austrian’s first touch was sublime and so was his finish as he calmly swept it past Mignolet.  Sunderland were robbed of an equaliser before half-time when Guzan dropped the ball and Gardner bundled it home, only for ref Lee Probert to wrongly penalise Graham for fouling the keeper.  Having survived that scare, Villa romped to their biggest win for five years.  BENT OUT OF SHAPE ... Benteke scores his side's fifth goal of the game, completing his hat-trick  Benteke ran riot with a superb 17-minute hat-trick.  First, he reacted fastest when Mignolet could only parry Agbonlahor’s shot straight to the Belgian, who dived to head home from four yards on 55 minutes.  He made it 4-1 four minutes later when he soared above Cuellar and John O’Shea to power home an amazing back-post header.  And he got his hat-trick on 72 minutes, two minutes after Stephane Sessegnon was sent off for an over-the-top tackle on Yacouba Sylla.  Two minutes from the end, Agbonlahor completed the rout when he raced clear and calmly rounded Mignolet before popping the ball into the empty net.  DREAM TEAM STAR MAN — CHRISTIAN BENTEKE (Aston Villa)  ASTON VILLA: Guzan 6, Lowton 8, Vlaar 8, Baker 8, Bennett 8, Westwood 8, Delph 8, Sylla 8, Weimann 8, Benteke 9, Agbonlahor 8. Subs: Bent (Benteke 79) 6. Not used: Given, N’Zogbia, Holman, Bowery, Bannan, Lichaj.  SUNDERLAND: Mignolet 4, Bardsley 4, O’Shea 4, Cuellar 4, Rose 6, Larsson 3, N’Diaye 4, Gardner 5, Johnson 4, Sessegnon 3, Graham 5. Subs: McClean (Larsson 62) 4, Mandron (Graham 86) 3, Vaughan (Gardner 87) 3. Not used: Westwood, Kilgallon, Colback, Mangane. Booked: Cuellar, Bardsley, Rose. Sent off: Sessegnon.
PAUL LAMBERT’S cubs became Lambo’s Lions as they mauled poor Paolo Di Canio’s Black Cats at Villa Park on Monday night