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David Moyes had made clear before Fulham's visit that the responsibility for scoring goals should not rest only on the team's forwards. “I demand more goals from my centre-halves and central players as well,” he stated. Idrissa Gueye and the English defender rose to the occasion, delivering a well-earned victory over Marco Silva’s ineffective team.

Everton’s second victory in nine outings was largely untroubled as Fulham demonstrated the reason their leading scorer this season is goals gifted by opponents. Apart from a brief flurry in the latter period, the away side were subdued throughout by the home team's superior intensity and technical ability. The Blues had three efforts disallowed for infringements, but a poacher’s finish from Gueye in added time before the break and the defender's late conversion ensured there would be no reprieve for their ex-coach.

No player was more in need of scoring more than Thierno Barry, the Goodison Park forward who had gone 10 Premier League outings without testing the goalkeeper after his big-money move from the Spanish side and spurned a clear opportunity to put his team two goals ahead at the Stadium of Light earlier in the week. The youngster headed the earliest chance of the game over the Fulham keeper's crossbar when found by his teammate's fine cross.

The home side controlled the early exchanges and the visiting shot-stopper pushed over the midfielder's 30-yard free-kick, awarded after the Fulham player was booked for fouling Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Lukic brought down the identical opponent later in the half but the referee, the man in charge, rightly ignored home protests for a second yellow. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, though, and substituted the midfielder at the interval.

Barry believed his fortune had finally turned when arriving at the far post to turn in a drilled pass by Gueye. But the joy of a maiden strike was erased by an linesman's decision. The attacker was offside when attacking the delivery, and missing, and the VAR supported the original call. Barry’s misfortune may have persisted in front of goal, but his overall display justified the manager's choice to stick with him. His runs and work-rate kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and contributed to Everton the edge throughout.

The Londoners came into the contest gradually with Sander Berge and the ex-Goodison player the Nigerian working well in the engine room, but the early danger from the visitors was minimal. Raúl Jiménez fired weakly at Jordon Pickford when teed up in the box by his teammate and put a free-kick from a promising location straight into the defensive barrier. And that was it.

Everton, inspired by the midfielder and Ndiaye, had a second goal chalked off for an infringement when Leno parried a Keane header and the captain volleyed in the rebound. The skipper had just strayed offside when nodding down Jack Grealish’s delivery in the build-up. But Everton’s next effort past Leno counted. The left-back delivered a perfect ball to the far post when left unmarked on the left by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a thumping header against the bar and, though Iroegbunam mishit the rebound, his midfield partner Gueye finished from close range. The relief inside the ground was evident.

Everton had a third goal disallowed early in the second half after the playmaker scored from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. Ndiaye had cushioned the delivery into the striker, who was in an offside position when challenging Joachim Anderson for the ball that reached the home player. The team would have to wait until the 81st minute for the security of a two-goal lead. Dewsbury-Hall was the architect with a corner that the defender glanced past Leno. He did so with the upper body, and Fulham’s appeals for a handball were rejected by the video official.

Silva’s side carried more of a threat following the introductions of Josh King, Rodrigo Muniz and Adama Traoré. Pickford saved well with his feet to prevent Muniz finding the net with his first touch and denied the speedster with another important stop in the dying moments.