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David Moyes had made clear before Fulham's visit that the onus for finding the back of the net should not rest only on the team's forwards. “I want more goals from my defenders and central players as well,” he stated. Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane duly obliged, earning a fully deserved victory over Marco Silva’s toothless team.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine matches was fairly straightforward as Fulham highlighted the reason their top marksman this season is opposition own goals. Aside from a brief flurry in the latter period, the visitors were contained throughout by Everton’s superior intensity and quality. The Blues had three efforts disallowed for offside, but a close-range strike from the midfielder in first-half stoppage time and Keane’s second-half header ensured there would be no reprieve for their ex-coach.

No one needed a goal more than Thierno Barry, the Everton attacker who had failed to register a shot on target in 10 league games without a shot on target after his £27m summer arrival from the Spanish side and spurned a gilt-edged chance to put his team two goals ahead at the Stadium of Light earlier in the week. The 23-year-old directed the earliest chance of the game over Bernd Leno’s crossbar when picked out by his teammate's excellent delivery.

Everton controlled the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over James Garner’s long-range set-piece, given after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for fouling Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Lukic tripped the same player again before halftime but the referee, the man in charge, correctly waved away Everton appeals for a sending off. Silva was not risking anything, though, and withdrew the midfielder at the interval.

The striker believed his luck had finally turned when sliding in at the back post to convert a low cross by Gueye. But the joy of a first Everton goal was wiped out by an assistant referee’s flag. Ndiaye was in an illegal position when attacking the delivery, and failing to connect, and the video assistant referee supported the on-field decision. The forward's bad luck may have continued in the final third, but his overall display validated the manager's choice to keep the faith. His movement and effort kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and contributed to Everton the upper hand all game.

The Londoners came into the contest gradually with the Norwegian and the ex-Goodison player the Nigerian working well in midfield, but the early danger from the away team was minimal. Raúl Jiménez fired weakly at the England keeper when set up in the box by Iwobi and sent a set-piece from a dangerous position directly at the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

The Blues, driven on by the midfielder and the forward, had a second goal disallowed for offside when Leno saved a Keane header and the captain fired home the loose ball. The home captain had just strayed offside when heading on Jack Grealish’s cross in the build-up. But the team's next effort beating Leno did stand. The left-back floated a perfect ball to the back post when left unmarked on the left by the youngster. The defender connected with a thumping header against the bar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his teammate Gueye finished from close range. The relief inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was evident.

Everton had a further effort disallowed after the restart after the playmaker scored from another inviting delivery from the left. The attacker had laid off the ball into Barry, who was offside when challenging the Fulham defender for the touch that fell to the Everton midfielder. The team would have to be patient until the closing stages for the comfort of a two-goal lead. Dewsbury-Hall was the architect with a corner that the defender glanced past the goalkeeper. He scored with the upper body, and Fulham’s appeals for handball were dismissed by the video official.

Fulham posed more danger after the introductions of the forward, Rodrigo Muniz and the winger. Pickford made a fine stop with his legs to deny the substitute scoring with his first touch and denied Traoré with another important stop in the dying moments.