Idrissa Gueye along with Michael Keane on target as Everton defeat Fulham

The Everton manager had emphasized before Fulham's visit that the onus for scoring goals should not rest only on the team's forwards. “I expect more goals from my defenders and central players as well,” he stated. The Senegalese midfielder and the English defender duly obliged, securing a merited victory over the opposition's toothless side.

Everton’s second victory in nine matches was fairly straightforward as the visitors highlighted the reason their leading scorer this season is goals gifted by opponents. Apart from a short spell in the second half, the away side were subdued all match by Everton’s superior intensity and quality. Moyes’ team had three efforts ruled out for offside, but a close-range strike from Gueye in added time before the break and the defender's late conversion made sure there would be no comeback for their ex-coach.

No player needed a goal as much as Thierno Barry, the Everton attacker who had gone 10 Premier League outings without testing the goalkeeper after his big-money move from Villarreal and missed a clear opportunity to put his team 2-0 up at Sunderland earlier in the week. The youngster headed the earliest chance of the game wide of Bernd Leno’s crossbar when picked out by Iliman Ndiaye’s fine cross.

Everton dominated the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over the midfielder's long-range set-piece, awarded after the Fulham player was yellow-carded for fouling Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Lukic tripped the same player later in the half but the referee, Andrew Madley, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a sending off. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, however, and withdrew the player at the interval.

Barry thought his fortune had finally turned when arriving at the far post to turn in a low cross by Gueye. But the elation of a first Everton goal was erased by an linesman's decision. Ndiaye was offside when going for the delivery, and failing to connect, and the VAR backed up the original call. Barry’s misfortune may have persisted in the final third, but his all-round performance validated Moyes’ decision to keep the faith. His movement and work-rate kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and helped give the hosts the upper hand all game.

The Londoners came into the contest gradually with the Norwegian and the former Everton midfielder the Nigerian combining effectively in the engine room, but the early danger from the visitors was minimal. Raúl Jiménez shot tamely at Jordon Pickford when set up inside the area by Iwobi and put a set-piece from a promising location straight into the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

Everton, driven on by the midfielder and the forward, had a second goal disallowed for offside when Leno saved a effort from Keane and James Tarkowski volleyed in the loose ball. The home captain had moved offside when heading on Jack Grealish’s cross in the build-up. But the team's next effort past Leno did stand. Vitalii Mykolenko floated a lovely cross to the back post when left unmarked on the left by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a powerful nod against the bar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his midfield partner the scorer finished from point-blank. The relief inside the ground was palpable.

Everton had a third goal ruled out after the restart after the playmaker found the bottom corner from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. The attacker had laid off the ball into the striker, who was in an offside position when challenging the Fulham defender for the touch that fell to the Everton midfielder. The team would have to wait until the closing stages for the comfort of a two-goal lead. Dewsbury-Hall was the architect with a set-piece that Keane directed past Leno. He scored with the back of his shoulder, and Fulham’s appeals for handball were dismissed by VAR.

Fulham posed more danger following the substitutions of the forward, the Brazilian and the winger. Pickford made a fine stop with his legs to deny the substitute finding the net with his initial involvement and denied the speedster with another important stop late on.