Gueye along with Michael Keane find the net as Everton sink the Cottagers

David Moyes had stressed before Fulham's visit that the responsibility for finding the back of the net must not rest only on his side's strikers. “I expect more goals from my defenders and central players as well,” he stated. The Senegalese midfielder and Michael Keane responded perfectly, securing a merited victory over Marco Silva’s ineffective side.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine outings was relatively comfortable as Fulham demonstrated the reason their top marksman this season is goals gifted by opponents. Aside from a brief flurry in the second half, the away side were subdued all match by the home team's greater urgency and quality. Moyes’ team had three goals disallowed for offside, but a close-range strike 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 player needed a goal as much as the young striker, the Goodison Park attacker who had gone 10 Premier League outings without a shot on target after his £27m summer arrival from Villarreal and missed a gilt-edged chance to put his team two goals ahead at Sunderland on Monday. The youngster directed the first opportunity of the game over the Fulham keeper's crossbar when found by his teammate's fine cross.

The home side controlled the early exchanges and the visiting shot-stopper pushed over the midfielder's long-range set-piece, awarded after the Fulham player was booked for fouling the Everton midfielder. Lukic brought down the identical opponent again before halftime but the referee, the man in charge, rightly ignored home protests for a second yellow. Silva was not risking anything, though, and substituted the midfielder at the interval.

The striker thought his fortune had changed at last when arriving at the far post to turn in a drilled pass by his teammate. But the joy of a maiden strike was erased by an linesman's decision. Ndiaye was in an illegal position when going for Gueye’s cross, and failing to connect, and the VAR backed up the original call. Barry’s misfortune may have persisted in the final third, but his all-round performance justified Moyes’ decision to keep the faith. His runs and effort 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 former Everton midfielder the Nigerian combining effectively in midfield, but the first half threat from the visitors was minimal. The Mexican striker fired weakly at the England keeper when teed up in the box by his teammate and sent a set-piece from a dangerous position directly at the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

The Blues, driven on by the midfielder and Ndiaye, had a another strike chalked off for offside when the Fulham goalkeeper saved a effort from Keane and the captain volleyed in the rebound. The skipper had just strayed offside when heading on the winger's cross in the buildup. But the team's next effort beating Leno did stand. The left-back floated a perfect ball to the far post when left unmarked on the left by the youngster. The defender connected with a thumping header off the crossbar and, though Iroegbunam fluffed his lines, his midfield partner Gueye finished from point-blank. The relief inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was evident.

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 cushioned the delivery into Barry, who was offside when challenging Joachim Anderson for the ball that fell to the home player. Everton would have to wait until the closing stages for the comfort of a second goal. Dewsbury-Hall was the architect with a set-piece that Keane glanced past Leno. He scored with the upper body, and the visitors' protests for a handball were rejected by the video official.

Silva’s side carried more of a threat following the substitutions of the forward, the Brazilian and the winger. The Everton keeper saved well with his legs to deny Muniz finding the net with his initial involvement and stopped the speedster with another important stop in the dying moments.