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David Moyes had emphasized before Fulham's visit that the responsibility for scoring goals should not rest only on the team's strikers. “I demand more goals from my centre-halves and central players as well,” he insisted. Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane rose to the occasion, securing a well-earned victory over Marco Silva’s toothless team.

The Merseyside club's second win in nine matches was largely untroubled as Fulham highlighted the reason their leading scorer this season is opposition own goals. Aside from a short spell in the latter period, the visitors were contained all match by Everton’s greater urgency and technical ability. The Blues had three goals disallowed for infringements, but a poacher’s finish from Gueye in first-half stoppage time and the defender's second-half header ensured there would be no comeback for their ex-coach.

No player was more in need of scoring as much as Thierno Barry, the Everton attacker who had failed to register a shot on target in 10 league games without testing the goalkeeper after his £27m summer arrival from the Spanish side and spurned a gilt-edged chance to put his team 2-0 up at the Stadium of Light on Monday. The 23-year-old headed the earliest chance of the game wide of the Fulham keeper's goal frame when picked out by his teammate's fine cross.

Everton dominated the opening stages and the visiting shot-stopper pushed over James Garner’s 30-yard free-kick, given after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for hauling down Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The Serbian brought down the same player again before halftime but the referee, the man in charge, rightly ignored home protests for a sending off. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, though, and substituted the midfielder at the break.

The striker thought his luck had changed at last when sliding in at the far post to turn in a drilled pass by his teammate. But the joy of a first Everton goal was erased by an linesman's decision. Ndiaye was offside when attacking Gueye’s cross, and failing to connect, and the video assistant referee backed up the original call. Barry’s misfortune may have continued in front of goal, but his all-round performance justified the manager's choice to keep the faith. His movement and effort kept busy the opposition's back line and helped give the hosts the upper hand all game.

The Londoners came into the contest gradually with the Norwegian and the ex-Goodison player the Nigerian combining effectively in the engine room, but the first half threat from the away team was minimal. The Mexican striker fired weakly at the England keeper when teed up inside the area by Iwobi and sent a free-kick from a promising location straight into the Everton wall. And that was it.

Everton, 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 rebound. The skipper had moved offside when nodding down Jack Grealish’s delivery in the build-up. But the team's third attempt beating the keeper did stand. Vitalii Mykolenko floated a lovely cross to the back post when found in space on the left flank by Tim Iroegbunam. The defender connected with a powerful nod off the crossbar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his teammate the scorer finished from close range. The relief inside the ground was palpable.

Everton had a further effort disallowed early in the second half after Dewsbury-Hall scored from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. Ndiaye had cushioned the delivery into the striker, who was in an offside position when competing with Joachim Anderson for the touch 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 corner that the defender directed past Leno. He did so with the back of his shoulder, and the visitors' protests for a handball were dismissed by the video official.

Silva’s side carried more of a threat following the substitutions of Josh King, Rodrigo Muniz and the winger. Pickford saved well with his feet to deny Muniz scoring with his initial involvement and stopped Traoré with another important stop in the dying moments.