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The Everton manager had emphasized before Fulham's visit that the onus for scoring goals must not rest only on the team's forwards. “I demand more goals from my centre-halves and central players as well,” he declared. Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane rose to the occasion, earning a well-earned victory over the opposition's ineffective team.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine matches was relatively comfortable as the visitors highlighted the reason their leading scorer this season is goals gifted by opponents. Apart from a brief flurry in the second half, the away side were kept quiet throughout by the home team's superior intensity and quality. The Blues had three efforts disallowed for infringements, but a close-range strike from the midfielder in first-half stoppage time and Keane’s second-half header made sure there would be no comeback for the former Everton manager.

No one was more in need of scoring as much as the young striker, the Everton forward who had gone 10 Premier League outings without a shot on target after his big-money move from the Spanish side and spurned a gilt-edged chance to put his team 2-0 up at Sunderland on Monday. The youngster directed the earliest chance of the game over Bernd Leno’s crossbar when picked out by his teammate's excellent delivery.

Everton dominated the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper pushed over the midfielder's 30-yard free-kick, given after the Fulham player was yellow-carded for hauling down the Everton midfielder. Lukic tripped the same player later in the half but the referee, Andrew Madley, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a sending off. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, however, and substituted the player at the break.

The striker believed his luck 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. The attacker was in an illegal position when attacking the delivery, and missing, and the VAR supported the original call. The forward's bad luck may have persisted in the final third, but his overall display justified Moyes’ decision to stick with him. His runs and effort kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and helped give Everton the upper hand throughout.

Fulham came into the contest slowly with Sander Berge and the former Everton midfielder Alex Iwobi working well in midfield, but the early danger from the away team was limited. The Mexican striker shot tamely at Jordon Pickford when teed up inside the area by his teammate and put a free-kick from a dangerous position directly at the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

The Blues, inspired by the midfielder and Ndiaye, had a another strike disallowed for offside when the Fulham goalkeeper saved a Keane header and James Tarkowski volleyed in the loose ball. The skipper had moved beyond the last defender when heading on the winger's delivery in the build-up. But the team's next effort beating Leno counted. Vitalii Mykolenko delivered a lovely cross to the back post when left unmarked on the left by Tim Iroegbunam. Tarkowski connected with a powerful nod against the bar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his midfield partner the scorer finished from close range. The sense of release inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was palpable.

Everton had a further effort ruled out early in the second half after the playmaker scored from a further excellent delivery from the left. The attacker had cushioned the ball into Barry, who was offside when competing with Joachim Anderson for the ball that reached the home player. The team would have to wait until the closing stages for the security of a second goal. The provider was the architect with a set-piece that Keane glanced past Leno. He did so with the back of his shoulder, and Fulham’s appeals for handball were dismissed by the video official.

Fulham posed more danger after the substitutions of the forward, the Brazilian and the winger. The Everton keeper saved well with his feet to deny Muniz scoring with his first touch and denied Traoré with another important stop late on.