🔗 Share this article

David Moyes had stressed before Fulham's visit that the onus for scoring goals should not fall solely on his side's strikers. “I expect more goals from my defenders and midfielders as well,” he declared. The Senegalese midfielder and the English defender duly obliged, earning a well-earned victory over Marco Silva’s ineffective side.

Everton’s second victory in nine outings was largely untroubled as the visitors showed the reason their leading scorer this season is opposition own goals. Apart from a short spell in the second half, the away side were kept quiet throughout by Everton’s greater urgency and quality. The Blues had three efforts ruled out for infringements, but a poacher’s finish 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 one was more in need of scoring as much as 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 2-0 up at the Stadium of Light on Monday. The 23-year-old directed the first opportunity of the game over the Fulham keeper's crossbar when picked out by his teammate's excellent delivery.

Everton dominated the early exchanges and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over the midfielder's 30-yard free-kick, awarded after Sasa Lukic was booked for hauling down the Everton midfielder. The Serbian brought down the same player later in the half but the referee, the man in charge, correctly waved away Everton appeals for a sending off. Silva was not risking anything, though, and substituted the midfielder at the interval.

Barry believed his fortune had changed at last when sliding in at the back post to turn in a drilled pass by Gueye. But the elation of a first Everton goal was erased by an linesman's decision. The attacker was in an illegal position when going for Gueye’s cross, and failing to connect, and the video assistant referee backed up the on-field decision. The forward's bad luck may have continued in front of goal, but his all-round performance validated Moyes’ decision to keep the faith. His runs and effort kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and helped give Everton the edge all game.

The Londoners grew into the game gradually with the Norwegian and the former Everton midfielder Alex Iwobi working well in the engine room, but the first half threat from the visitors was minimal. Raúl Jiménez fired weakly at the England keeper when teed up inside the area by Iwobi and put a set-piece from a promising location directly at the Everton wall. That summed up their attacking output.

The Blues, driven on by Dewsbury-Hall and the forward, had a another strike chalked off for an infringement when Leno saved a effort from Keane and James Tarkowski volleyed in the rebound. The home captain had moved offside when nodding down the winger's cross in the build-up. But Everton’s next effort past the keeper did stand. The left-back delivered a lovely cross to the far post when found in space on the left by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a thumping header off the crossbar and, though Iroegbunam mishit the rebound, his midfield partner Gueye finished from close range. The relief inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was evident.

The home side had a further effort disallowed after the restart after the playmaker scored from another inviting Mykolenko cross. The attacker had laid off the delivery into the striker, who was offside when competing with the Fulham defender for the touch that reached the home player. The team would have to wait until the closing stages for the comfort of a two-goal lead. Dewsbury-Hall was the architect with a set-piece that Keane glanced over the goalkeeper. He scored with the back of his shoulder, and the visitors' protests for handball were dismissed by the video official.

Silva’s side posed more danger following the introductions of Josh King, the Brazilian and the winger. Pickford made a fine stop with his feet to deny the substitute finding the net with his initial involvement and stopped the speedster with another important stop in the dying moments.