Gueye along with Keane on target as the Toffees defeat Fulham

David Moyes had emphasized before Fulham's visit that the responsibility for finding the back of the net should not fall solely on the team's forwards. “I want more goals from my defenders and central players as well,” he stated. The Senegalese midfielder and Michael Keane rose to the occasion, earning a fully deserved victory over the opposition's ineffective side.

Everton’s second victory in nine matches was largely untroubled as the visitors highlighted the reason their top marksman this season is opposition own goals. Aside from a brief flurry in the second half, the away side were subdued throughout by Everton’s greater urgency and technical ability. The Blues had three goals disallowed for infringements, but a close-range strike from the midfielder in first-half stoppage time and the defender's late conversion ensured there would be no reprieve for their ex-coach.

No player needed a goal as much as the young striker, the Everton attacker 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 on Monday. The 23-year-old headed the earliest chance of the game over the Fulham keeper's goal frame when picked out by Iliman Ndiaye’s excellent delivery.

Everton dominated the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over James Garner’s long-range set-piece, awarded after Sasa Lukic was booked for fouling the Everton midfielder. Lukic brought down the identical opponent again before halftime but the referee, the man in charge, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a second yellow. Silva was not risking anything, however, and substituted the player at the break.

The striker thought his luck had changed at last when sliding in at the back post to turn in a drilled pass by Gueye. But the elation of a maiden strike was erased by an assistant referee’s flag. Ndiaye was offside when going for Gueye’s cross, and failing to connect, and the video assistant referee supported the original call. Barry’s misfortune may have persisted in front of goal, but his all-round performance justified the manager's choice to stick with him. His movement and work-rate occupied Fulham’s central defenders and helped give Everton the upper hand all game.

The Londoners grew into the game gradually with Sander Berge and the ex-Goodison player Alex Iwobi working well in the engine room, but the first half threat from the away team was limited. Raúl Jiménez fired weakly at Jordon Pickford when teed up inside the area by Iwobi and put a set-piece from a dangerous position straight into the Everton wall. That summed up their attacking output.

Everton, driven on by Dewsbury-Hall and the forward, had a second goal disallowed for an infringement when the Fulham goalkeeper saved a Keane header and James Tarkowski fired home the loose ball. The home captain had moved offside when heading on Jack Grealish’s delivery in the buildup. But Everton’s third attempt beating Leno did stand. The left-back delivered a perfect ball to the back post when left unmarked on the left flank by Tim Iroegbunam. Tarkowski met it with a powerful nod against the bar and, though Iroegbunam mishit the rebound, his midfield partner Gueye converted from close range. The relief inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was palpable.

The home side had a third goal disallowed after the restart after the playmaker scored from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. Ndiaye had cushioned the delivery into Barry, who was offside when competing with Joachim Anderson for the ball that fell to the Everton midfielder. The team would have to be patient until the 81st minute for the comfort of a two-goal lead. Dewsbury-Hall was the architect with a set-piece that the defender directed over Leno. He scored with the upper body, and the visitors' protests for a handball were dismissed by the video official.

Fulham carried more of a threat after the introductions of Josh King, Rodrigo Muniz and Adama Traoré. Pickford made a fine stop with his legs to deny the substitute scoring with his first touch and denied Traoré with a crucial save late on.