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The Everton manager had emphasized before the match against Fulham that the responsibility for finding the back of the net should not rest only on the team's strikers. “I demand more goals from my centre-halves and midfielders as well,” he stated. The Senegalese midfielder and the English defender rose to the occasion, securing a well-earned victory over Marco Silva’s toothless team.

Everton’s second victory in nine outings was fairly straightforward as Fulham demonstrated why their top marksman this season is opposition own goals. Apart from a brief flurry in the latter period, the visitors were kept quiet throughout by Everton’s greater urgency and quality. Moyes’ team had three efforts ruled out for offside, 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 their ex-coach.

No one was more in need of scoring as much as the young striker, the Everton attacker who had gone 10 Premier League outings without a shot on target after his £27m summer arrival from Villarreal and spurned a clear opportunity to put his team 2-0 up at the Stadium of Light on Monday. The 23-year-old headed the first opportunity of the game wide of the Fulham keeper's crossbar when found by Iliman Ndiaye’s excellent delivery.

The home side dominated the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper pushed over James Garner’s long-range set-piece, awarded after Sasa Lukic was yellow-carded for hauling down Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The Serbian brought down the identical opponent later in the half but the referee, the man in charge, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a sending off. Silva was taking no further chances, though, and withdrew the player at the break.

The striker believed his luck had changed at last when sliding in at the back post to turn in a low cross by his teammate. But the joy of a first Everton goal was erased by an assistant referee’s flag. The attacker was offside when going for the delivery, and failing to connect, and the video assistant referee backed up the on-field decision. The forward's bad luck may have continued in front of goal, but his all-round performance justified the manager's choice to keep the faith. His runs and work-rate kept busy the opposition's back line and helped give Everton the upper hand all game.

The Londoners came into the contest slowly with Sander Berge and the ex-Goodison player the Nigerian working well in midfield, but the first half threat from the visitors was limited. The Mexican striker shot tamely at the England keeper when set up inside the area by his teammate and put a set-piece from a dangerous position directly at the defensive barrier. That summed up their attacking output.

Everton, inspired by Dewsbury-Hall and the forward, had a another strike disallowed for offside when Leno parried a Keane header and the captain volleyed in the rebound. The home captain had moved beyond the last defender when nodding down Jack Grealish’s cross in the buildup. But Everton’s third attempt beating Leno counted. The left-back floated a lovely cross to the far post when left unmarked on the left flank by Tim Iroegbunam. The defender met it with a powerful nod against the bar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his midfield partner Gueye finished from close range. The relief inside the ground was evident.

The home side had a further effort ruled out early in the second half after the playmaker scored from another inviting delivery from the left. Ndiaye had laid off the delivery into Barry, who was offside when competing with Joachim Anderson for the touch that reached the Everton midfielder. Everton would have to wait until the 81st minute for the comfort of a two-goal lead. The provider was the architect with a set-piece that Keane directed over Leno. He did so with the upper body, and the visitors' protests for handball were dismissed by the video official.

Silva’s side carried more of a threat after the substitutions of Josh King, Rodrigo Muniz and the winger. Pickford saved well with his legs to deny Muniz finding the net with his initial involvement and stopped the speedster with a crucial save late on.