🔗 Share this article

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 defenders and midfielders as well,” he stated. Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane duly obliged, earning a well-earned victory over the opposition's ineffective team.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine matches was largely untroubled as the visitors demonstrated why their top marksman this season is goals gifted by opponents. Aside from a short spell in the second half, the visitors were subdued all match by Everton’s greater urgency and quality. Moyes’ team had three efforts ruled out for infringements, but a poacher’s finish from Gueye in added time before the break and the defender's late conversion 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 attacker who had failed to register a shot on target in 10 league games without testing the goalkeeper 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 headed the earliest chance of the game wide of Bernd Leno’s goal frame when picked out by Iliman Ndiaye’s excellent delivery.

Everton dominated the early exchanges and the visiting shot-stopper tipped over James Garner’s 30-yard free-kick, given after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for hauling down Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The Serbian tripped the identical opponent again before halftime but the referee, Andrew Madley, rightly ignored home protests for a sending off. Silva was not risking anything, however, and substituted the player at the interval.

The striker thought his luck had changed at last when arriving at the back post to turn in a drilled pass by Gueye. But the joy of a maiden strike was wiped out by an assistant referee’s flag. The attacker was offside when attacking Gueye’s cross, and failing to connect, and the VAR backed up the original call. The forward's bad luck may have continued in the final third, but his overall display validated the manager's choice to keep the faith. His movement and work-rate occupied Fulham’s central defenders and contributed to the hosts the edge all game.

Fulham grew into the game gradually with the Norwegian and the ex-Goodison player Alex Iwobi combining effectively in midfield, but the first half threat from the visitors was limited. Raúl Jiménez shot tamely at the England keeper when set up in the box by Iwobi and put a free-kick from a promising location directly at the Everton wall. And that was it.

Everton, inspired by Dewsbury-Hall and the forward, had a another strike chalked off for offside when Leno parried a effort from Keane and the captain volleyed in the rebound. The home captain had moved beyond the last defender when nodding down the winger's cross in the buildup. But the team's third attempt beating Leno counted. Vitalii Mykolenko delivered a perfect ball to the back post when left unmarked on the left by the youngster. The defender met it with a thumping header off the crossbar and, though Iroegbunam fluffed his lines, his teammate Gueye finished from point-blank. The relief inside the ground was palpable.

Everton had a further effort ruled out after the restart after Dewsbury-Hall found the bottom corner from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. The attacker had laid off the ball into Barry, who was offside when challenging the Fulham defender for the touch that fell to the home player. Everton would have to be patient until the 81st minute for the comfort of a second goal. The provider was the creator with a set-piece that the defender glanced over Leno. He scored with the upper body, and the visitors' protests for handball were dismissed by VAR.

Fulham posed more danger after the substitutions of Josh King, Rodrigo Muniz and Adama Traoré. Pickford made a fine stop with his legs to prevent Muniz scoring with his initial involvement and stopped Traoré with a crucial save in the dying moments.