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The Everton manager had emphasized before Fulham's visit that the onus for finding the back of the net must not fall solely on his side's strikers. “I expect more goals from my defenders and central players as well,” he stated. The Senegalese midfielder and Michael Keane duly obliged, delivering a well-earned victory over Marco Silva’s ineffective team.

The Merseyside club's second win in nine matches was largely untroubled as Fulham demonstrated the reason their top marksman this season is goals gifted by opponents. Apart from a brief flurry in the latter period, the away side were subdued all match by Everton’s superior intensity and quality. Moyes’ team had three efforts disallowed for infringements, but a poacher’s finish from Gueye in added time before the break and Keane’s second-half header made sure there would be no reprieve for their ex-coach.

No one was more in need of scoring more than the young striker, the Everton forward 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 two goals ahead at the Stadium of Light earlier in the week. The 23-year-old headed the first opportunity of the game over Bernd Leno’s crossbar when found by his teammate's fine cross.

The home side controlled the early exchanges and the visiting shot-stopper pushed over James Garner’s 30-yard free-kick, given after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for fouling the Everton midfielder. Lukic brought down the identical opponent later in the half but the official, Andrew Madley, correctly waved away Everton appeals for a sending off. The Fulham boss was not risking anything, however, and withdrew the player at the interval.

The striker believed his luck had finally turned when arriving at the back post to convert a drilled pass by Gueye. But the elation of a first Everton goal was wiped out by an assistant referee’s flag. The attacker was offside when attacking the delivery, and missing, and the VAR backed up the on-field decision. Barry’s misfortune may have persisted in the final third, but his all-round performance validated Moyes’ decision to keep the faith. His runs and work-rate occupied the opposition's back line and contributed to Everton the edge throughout.

Fulham grew into the game slowly with Sander Berge and the former Everton midfielder Alex Iwobi working well in midfield, but the early danger from the visitors was limited. The Mexican striker fired weakly at the England keeper when set up in the box by Iwobi and sent a free-kick from a promising location directly at the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

Everton, inspired by Dewsbury-Hall and Ndiaye, had a another strike disallowed for offside when the Fulham goalkeeper saved a effort from Keane and James Tarkowski fired home the rebound. The skipper had moved offside when nodding down the winger's delivery in the build-up. But the team's next effort beating Leno counted. The left-back floated a perfect ball to the far post when found in space on the left by Tim Iroegbunam. Tarkowski met it with a thumping header against the bar and, though the midfielder fluffed his lines, his teammate the scorer finished from point-blank. The relief inside the ground was evident.

Everton had a third goal disallowed early in the second half after Dewsbury-Hall scored from another inviting Mykolenko cross. The attacker had cushioned the ball into Barry, who was offside when competing with the Fulham defender for the touch that fell to the Everton midfielder. Everton would have to be patient until the 81st minute for the comfort of a two-goal lead. The provider was the architect with a set-piece that Keane directed past the goalkeeper. He did so with the back of his shoulder, and Fulham’s appeals for a handball were rejected by VAR.

Fulham posed more danger after the substitutions of the forward, the Brazilian and the winger. The Everton keeper saved well with his legs to prevent Muniz scoring with his first touch and stopped the speedster with another important stop late on.