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David Moyes had emphasized before the match against Fulham that the onus for finding the back of the net must not rest only on his side's forwards. “I expect more goals from my centre-halves and midfielders as well,” he declared. Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane duly obliged, earning a fully deserved victory over the opposition's ineffective side.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine outings was relatively comfortable as the visitors demonstrated why their top marksman this season is opposition own goals. Aside from a brief flurry in the latter period, the away side were subdued throughout by the home team's superior intensity and technical ability. Moyes’ team had three efforts disallowed for offside, but a poacher’s finish from Gueye in added time before the break and Keane’s late conversion made sure there would be no comeback for their ex-coach.

No one was more in need of scoring as much as Thierno Barry, the Everton forward who had gone 10 Premier League outings without testing the goalkeeper after his £27m summer arrival from the Spanish side and missed a gilt-edged chance to put his team 2-0 up at Sunderland earlier in the week. The 23-year-old headed the first opportunity of the game over Bernd Leno’s crossbar when found by Iliman Ndiaye’s fine cross.

The home side controlled the early exchanges and the visiting shot-stopper pushed over James Garner’s long-range set-piece, awarded after Sasa Lukic was booked for hauling down Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Lukic brought down the same player later in the half but the referee, the man in charge, correctly waved away home protests for a second yellow. Silva was taking no further chances, however, and substituted the player at the interval.

The striker believed his luck had finally turned when arriving at the far post to convert a drilled pass by Gueye. But the elation of a first Everton goal was erased by an linesman's decision. Ndiaye was in an illegal position when attacking the delivery, and failing to connect, and the VAR backed up the on-field decision. Barry’s misfortune may have persisted in front of goal, but his all-round performance validated the manager's choice to stick with him. His movement and effort kept busy the opposition's back line and contributed to the hosts the upper hand all game.

Fulham grew into the game slowly with Sander Berge and the ex-Goodison player Alex Iwobi combining effectively in the engine room, but the first half threat from the visitors was minimal. Raúl Jiménez fired weakly at the England keeper when set up inside the area by Iwobi and sent a set-piece from a dangerous position directly at the Everton wall. And that was it.

Everton, driven on by Dewsbury-Hall and the forward, had a another strike chalked off for offside when Leno saved a Keane header and the captain volleyed in the rebound. The home captain had just strayed offside when heading on Jack Grealish’s delivery in the buildup. But the team's next effort beating Leno did stand. Vitalii Mykolenko delivered a perfect ball to the far post when left unmarked on the left flank by the youngster. Tarkowski connected with a powerful nod against the bar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his teammate the scorer converted from point-blank. The relief inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was evident.

The home side had a third goal ruled out early in the second half after Dewsbury-Hall found the bottom corner from another inviting Mykolenko cross. The attacker had cushioned the ball into Barry, who was offside when challenging Joachim Anderson for the touch that reached the Everton midfielder. Everton would have to wait until the closing stages for the security of a second goal. Dewsbury-Hall was the creator with a corner that Keane directed past Leno. He scored with the back of his shoulder, and Fulham’s appeals for handball were rejected by the video official.

Fulham posed more danger following the introductions of the forward, Rodrigo Muniz and Adama Traoré. The Everton keeper made a fine stop with his feet to prevent the substitute scoring with his initial involvement and stopped Traoré with another important stop in the dying moments.