Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane on target as Everton overcome Fulham

The Everton manager had made clear before the match against Fulham that the onus for finding the back of the net must not rest only on the team's forwards. “I want more goals from my centre-halves and midfielders as well,” he stated. The Senegalese midfielder and the English defender responded perfectly, earning a well-earned victory over Marco Silva’s toothless side.

Everton’s second win in nine outings was largely untroubled as the visitors showed why their top marksman this season is opposition own goals. Apart from a short spell in the latter period, the visitors were contained throughout by the home team's superior intensity and technical ability. The Blues had three efforts ruled out for infringements, but a close-range strike from the midfielder in added time before the break and Keane’s second-half header ensured there would be no reprieve for the former Everton manager.

No one was more in need of scoring as much as Thierno Barry, the Goodison Park attacker who had gone 10 Premier League outings without testing the goalkeeper after his big-money move from the Spanish side and spurned a gilt-edged chance to put his team two goals ahead at Sunderland earlier in the week. The youngster headed the earliest chance of the game over Bernd Leno’s crossbar when found by Iliman Ndiaye’s excellent delivery.

The home side dominated the early exchanges and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over James Garner’s long-range set-piece, given after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for fouling Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The Serbian brought down the identical opponent again before halftime but the official, the man in charge, correctly waved away home protests for a sending off. Silva was not risking anything, however, and withdrew the player at the break.

The striker thought his fortune had finally turned when arriving at the back post to turn in a low cross by his teammate. But the joy of a first Everton goal was wiped out by an linesman's decision. Ndiaye was in an illegal position when going for Gueye’s cross, and missing, and the video assistant referee backed up the on-field decision. Barry’s misfortune may have continued in front of goal, but his overall display validated the manager's choice to stick with him. His runs and work-rate kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and contributed to Everton the upper hand throughout.

Fulham came into the contest gradually with the Norwegian and the former Everton midfielder Alex Iwobi working well in the engine room, but the early danger from the visitors was limited. The Mexican striker fired weakly at the England keeper when set up inside the area by Iwobi and sent a set-piece from a promising location straight into the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

The Blues, inspired by Dewsbury-Hall and Ndiaye, had a second goal disallowed for offside when the Fulham goalkeeper parried a effort from Keane and James Tarkowski fired home the rebound. The skipper had moved offside when heading on the winger's delivery in the buildup. But the team's next effort past the keeper counted. The left-back floated a perfect ball to the far post when found in space on the left flank by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a powerful nod against the bar and, though the midfielder fluffed his lines, his teammate the scorer converted from close range. The sense of release inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was evident.

Everton had a further effort ruled out early in the second half after Dewsbury-Hall scored from another inviting Mykolenko cross. Ndiaye had cushioned the ball into Barry, who was in an offside position when challenging the Fulham defender for the ball that reached the Everton midfielder. Everton would have to be patient until the closing stages for the comfort of a second goal. The provider was the creator with a corner that the defender directed over Leno. He scored with the upper body, and Fulham’s appeals for a handball were rejected by the video official.

Silva’s side posed more danger following the substitutions of the forward, the Brazilian and Adama Traoré. Pickford made a fine stop with his legs to deny the substitute scoring with his initial involvement and denied Traoré with another important stop in the dying moments.