Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane on target as the Toffees sink the Cottagers

The Everton manager had emphasized before Fulham's visit that the onus for finding the back of the net should not rest only on the team's strikers. “I demand more goals from my centre-halves and midfielders as well,” he insisted. Idrissa Gueye and the English defender rose to the occasion, earning a merited victory over the opposition's ineffective team.

The Merseyside club's second win in nine outings was relatively comfortable as Fulham highlighted why their top marksman this season is goals gifted by opponents. Apart from a short spell in the latter period, the visitors were subdued throughout by Everton’s greater urgency and technical ability. Moyes’ team had three goals ruled out for infringements, but a close-range strike from Gueye in first-half stoppage time and the defender's second-half header made sure there would be no reprieve for the former Everton manager.

No one was more in need of scoring more than the young striker, the Goodison Park forward who had gone 10 Premier League outings without a shot on target after his big-money move from Villarreal and spurned a clear opportunity to put his team 2-0 up at Sunderland earlier in the week. The 23-year-old headed the earliest chance of the game over Bernd Leno’s crossbar when picked out by Iliman Ndiaye’s excellent delivery.

Everton controlled the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over the midfielder's long-range set-piece, given after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for fouling the Everton midfielder. The Serbian tripped the identical opponent again before halftime but the referee, Andrew Madley, rightly ignored home protests for a second yellow. The Fulham boss was not risking anything, however, and substituted the midfielder at the interval.

The striker believed his fortune had finally turned when arriving at the back post to turn in a low cross by his teammate. But the elation of a maiden strike was wiped out by an linesman's decision. The attacker was in an illegal position when attacking the delivery, and failing to connect, and the VAR supported the original call. The forward's bad luck may have continued in front of goal, but his all-round performance validated the manager's choice to stick with him. His movement and work-rate kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and helped give Everton the edge all game.

Fulham came into the contest gradually with the Norwegian and the ex-Goodison player Alex Iwobi combining effectively in the engine room, but the first half threat from the visitors was minimal. The Mexican striker fired weakly at Jordon Pickford when teed up in the box by his teammate and put a free-kick from a dangerous position directly at the Everton wall. And that was it.

The Blues, inspired by the midfielder and Ndiaye, had a another strike disallowed for offside when the Fulham goalkeeper parried a effort from Keane and the captain volleyed in the rebound. The home captain had just strayed offside when nodding down the winger's delivery in the buildup. But the team's third attempt beating the keeper counted. Vitalii Mykolenko floated a perfect ball to the far post when found in space on the left by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a powerful nod off the crossbar and, though Iroegbunam mishit the rebound, his teammate Gueye finished from close range. The relief inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was palpable.

Everton had a third goal ruled out after the restart after the playmaker scored from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. The attacker had cushioned the delivery into the striker, who was offside when challenging the Fulham defender for the touch that fell to 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 creator with a set-piece that Keane glanced over the goalkeeper. He did so with the upper body, and the visitors' protests for handball were dismissed by VAR.

Silva’s side posed more danger after the substitutions of the forward, Rodrigo Muniz and the winger. Pickford saved well with his feet to prevent Muniz finding the net with his first touch and denied the speedster with another important stop late on.