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David Moyes had emphasized before the match against Fulham that the responsibility for finding the back of the net must not fall solely 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, delivering a fully deserved victory over Marco Silva’s ineffective team.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine matches was largely untroubled as the visitors highlighted why their top marksman this season is opposition own goals. Apart from a short spell in the latter period, the away side were contained all match by the home team's greater urgency and quality. Moyes’ team had three goals disallowed for offside, but a poacher’s finish from the midfielder in first-half stoppage time and the defender's late conversion made sure there would be no comeback for the former Everton manager.

No one needed a goal more than the young striker, the Goodison Park forward who had gone 10 Premier League outings without a shot on target after his £27m summer arrival from Villarreal and missed a gilt-edged chance 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 goal frame when picked out by Iliman Ndiaye’s excellent delivery.

Everton dominated the early exchanges and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over the midfielder's long-range set-piece, awarded after the Fulham player was yellow-carded for hauling down Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Lukic brought down the same player later in the half but the official, Andrew Madley, rightly ignored home protests for a sending off. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, however, and withdrew the player at the break.

Barry thought his fortune had changed at last when arriving at the far post to convert a low cross by Gueye. But the elation of a first Everton goal was erased by an assistant referee’s flag. Ndiaye was offside when attacking the delivery, and missing, and the video assistant referee backed up the original call. The forward's bad luck may have persisted in front of goal, but his overall display justified Moyes’ decision to keep the faith. His movement and work-rate occupied Fulham’s central defenders and helped give Everton the edge throughout.

Fulham grew into the game slowly with Sander Berge and the ex-Goodison player the Nigerian working well in the engine room, but the early danger from the away team was minimal. The Mexican striker shot tamely at the England keeper when set up in the box by Iwobi and sent a free-kick from a promising location straight into the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

The Blues, driven on by Dewsbury-Hall and the forward, had a another strike chalked off for offside when the Fulham goalkeeper saved a effort from Keane and the captain volleyed in the rebound. The home captain had just strayed beyond the last defender when heading on Jack Grealish’s cross in the build-up. But Everton’s next effort past the keeper counted. Vitalii Mykolenko delivered a perfect ball to the far post when left unmarked on the left by Tim Iroegbunam. Tarkowski connected with a thumping header off the crossbar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his teammate the scorer converted from close range. The sense of release inside the ground was palpable.

Everton had a further effort ruled out after the restart after the playmaker found the bottom corner from another inviting Mykolenko cross. The attacker had laid off the ball into Barry, who was in an offside position when competing with Joachim Anderson for the touch that reached the home player. The team would have to wait until the closing stages for the comfort of a second goal. The provider was the creator with a corner that Keane glanced past the goalkeeper. He scored with the upper body, and Fulham’s appeals for handball were rejected by VAR.

Fulham carried more of a threat following the substitutions of Josh King, the Brazilian and the winger. The Everton keeper saved well with his legs to deny Muniz scoring with his initial involvement and denied Traoré with another important stop in the dying moments.