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The Everton manager had emphasized before Fulham's visit that the responsibility for scoring goals should not rest only on his side's strikers. “I demand more goals from my centre-halves and midfielders as well,” he insisted. Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane duly obliged, delivering a well-earned victory over the opposition's ineffective side.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine matches was fairly straightforward as the visitors showed why their top marksman this season is goals gifted by opponents. Aside from a brief flurry in the second half, the visitors were kept quiet all match by the home team's superior intensity and technical ability. The Blues had three goals ruled out for offside, 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 needed a goal as much as Thierno Barry, the Goodison Park attacker who had gone 10 Premier League outings without testing the goalkeeper after his £27m summer arrival from the Spanish side 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 goal frame when picked out by Iliman Ndiaye’s fine cross.

The home side dominated the early exchanges and the visiting shot-stopper tipped over the midfielder's long-range set-piece, awarded after the Fulham player was booked for hauling down the Everton midfielder. The Serbian tripped the same player again before halftime but the official, Andrew Madley, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a sending off. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, however, and withdrew the midfielder at the interval.

The striker thought his luck had changed at last when sliding in at the back post to turn in a drilled pass by his teammate. But the elation of a maiden strike was erased by an linesman's decision. The attacker was offside when attacking the delivery, and failing to connect, and the VAR backed up the original call. The forward's bad luck may have persisted in the final third, but his all-round performance validated Moyes’ decision to stick with him. His runs and work-rate occupied Fulham’s central defenders and helped give the hosts the upper hand all game.

The Londoners grew into the game slowly with the Norwegian and the ex-Goodison player the Nigerian working well in midfield, but the early danger from the away team was minimal. The Mexican striker shot tamely at the England keeper when teed up inside the area by his teammate and put a set-piece from a promising location directly at the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

Everton, inspired by Dewsbury-Hall and Ndiaye, had a second goal disallowed for offside when Leno parried a Keane header and the captain volleyed in the loose ball. The skipper had just strayed offside when nodding down Jack Grealish’s cross in the buildup. But the team's third attempt past the keeper did stand. Vitalii Mykolenko floated a perfect ball to the back post when found in space on the left by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a powerful nod off the crossbar and, though the midfielder fluffed his lines, his midfield partner Gueye finished from point-blank. The sense of release inside the ground was evident.

The home side had a further effort ruled out after the restart after the playmaker found the bottom corner from another inviting delivery from the left. Ndiaye had cushioned the ball into the striker, who was offside when competing with the Fulham defender for the touch that reached the home player. Everton would have to wait until the 81st minute for the comfort of a two-goal lead. Dewsbury-Hall was the creator with a corner that Keane directed over the goalkeeper. He did so with the back of his shoulder, and Fulham’s appeals for a handball were dismissed by VAR.

Silva’s side posed more danger after the substitutions of the forward, the Brazilian and the winger. Pickford made a fine stop with his feet to deny Muniz finding the net with his first touch and stopped Traoré with another important stop late on.