🔗 Share this article

The Everton manager had made clear before the match against Fulham that the onus for finding the back of the net should not rest only on the team's forwards. “I expect more goals from my defenders and central players as well,” he declared. The Senegalese midfielder and Michael Keane duly obliged, delivering a well-earned victory over the opposition's toothless side.

Everton’s second win in nine outings was largely untroubled as Fulham showed the reason their leading scorer this season is opposition own goals. Apart from a brief flurry in the latter period, the away side were subdued throughout by the home team's greater urgency and quality. Moyes’ team had three efforts ruled out for offside, but a close-range strike from the midfielder in added time before the break and Keane’s late conversion made sure there would be no reprieve for the former Everton manager.

No one was more in need of scoring as much as the young striker, the Everton attacker who had failed to register a shot on target in 10 league games without a shot on target after his big-money move 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 earliest chance of the game over Bernd Leno’s crossbar when found by Iliman Ndiaye’s fine cross.

The home side dominated the early exchanges and the Fulham goalkeeper pushed over James Garner’s 30-yard free-kick, given after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for hauling down Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Lukic tripped the identical opponent again before halftime but the official, the man in charge, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a second yellow. Silva was taking no further chances, however, and substituted the midfielder at the break.

Barry believed his luck had changed at last when arriving at the far post to turn in a low cross by his teammate. But the elation of a first Everton goal was wiped out by an linesman's decision. The attacker was offside when attacking the delivery, and failing to connect, and the video assistant referee supported the on-field decision. Barry’s misfortune may have continued in front of goal, but his all-round performance justified Moyes’ decision to keep the faith. His movement and work-rate occupied Fulham’s central defenders and helped give Everton the edge all game.

Fulham came into the contest slowly with Sander Berge and the ex-Goodison player Alex Iwobi working well in the engine room, but the early danger from the away team was limited. Raúl Jiménez shot tamely at Jordon Pickford when teed up in the box by Iwobi and put a set-piece from a dangerous position straight into the Everton wall. And that was it.

Everton, driven on by the midfielder and Ndiaye, had a second goal disallowed for an infringement when Leno parried a effort from Keane and the captain fired home the rebound. The home captain had just strayed offside when nodding down the winger's delivery in the build-up. But Everton’s next effort past the keeper counted. Vitalii Mykolenko delivered a perfect ball to the back post when left unmarked on the left by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a powerful nod off the crossbar and, though the midfielder fluffed his lines, his teammate the scorer finished from point-blank. The sense of release inside the ground was palpable.

Everton had a third goal ruled out early in the second half after the playmaker scored from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. The attacker had laid off the delivery into Barry, who was in an offside position when competing with Joachim Anderson for the touch that fell to the home player. The team would have to be patient until the 81st minute for the comfort of a second goal. Dewsbury-Hall was the creator with a set-piece that the defender directed past Leno. He did so with the upper body, and Fulham’s appeals for a handball were dismissed by the video official.

Fulham posed more danger following the introductions of the forward, Rodrigo Muniz and Adama Traoré. Pickford saved well with his legs to deny Muniz scoring with his first touch and denied the speedster with a crucial save in the dying moments.