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The Everton manager had made clear before Fulham's visit that the onus for scoring goals should not rest only on his side's forwards. “I want more goals from my defenders and central players as well,” he insisted. The Senegalese midfielder and the English defender duly obliged, delivering a merited victory over the opposition's ineffective side.

Everton’s second victory in nine matches was fairly straightforward as the visitors demonstrated why their leading scorer this season is goals gifted by opponents. Aside from a short spell in the latter period, the away side were kept quiet throughout by Everton’s greater urgency and quality. The Blues had three goals disallowed for offside, but a close-range strike from the midfielder in added time before the break and Keane’s late conversion ensured there would be no comeback for the former Everton manager.

No one needed a goal 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 £27m summer arrival from the Spanish side and spurned a clear opportunity to put his team 2-0 up at Sunderland on Monday. The youngster directed the first opportunity of the game wide of Bernd Leno’s goal frame when found by his teammate's excellent delivery.

The home side dominated the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper pushed over James Garner’s 30-yard free-kick, awarded after Sasa Lukic was booked for fouling Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The Serbian tripped the same player later in the half but the referee, Andrew Madley, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a sending off. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, however, and substituted the midfielder at the break.

Barry thought his fortune had finally turned when arriving at the back post to turn in a low cross by Gueye. But the elation of a first Everton goal was erased by an linesman's decision. The attacker was offside when going for Gueye’s cross, and missing, and the video assistant referee backed up the on-field decision. The forward's bad luck may have persisted in front of goal, but his all-round performance validated Moyes’ decision to keep the faith. His movement and effort kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and helped give the hosts the edge throughout.

The Londoners grew into the game slowly with the Norwegian and the former Everton midfielder the Nigerian working well in the engine room, but the early danger from the visitors was limited. Raúl Jiménez shot tamely at Jordon Pickford when teed up inside the area by his teammate and sent a free-kick from a promising location straight into the Everton wall. And that was it.

The Blues, inspired by the midfielder and Ndiaye, had a second goal disallowed for offside when Leno parried a effort from Keane and the captain fired home the rebound. The skipper had just strayed offside when nodding down the winger's cross in the build-up. But Everton’s third attempt beating Leno did stand. The left-back delivered a lovely cross to the far post when found in space on the left flank by the youngster. Tarkowski connected with a thumping header against the bar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his midfield partner Gueye finished from point-blank. The sense of release inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was evident.

The home side had a third goal disallowed after the restart after Dewsbury-Hall found the bottom corner from another inviting Mykolenko cross. The attacker had laid off the delivery into the striker, who was in an offside position when challenging Joachim Anderson for the ball that fell to the home player. The team would have to be patient until the closing stages for the comfort of a two-goal lead. The provider was the architect with a corner that Keane glanced over Leno. He scored with the upper body, and the visitors' protests for a handball were dismissed by VAR.

Fulham carried more of a threat following the substitutions of the forward, Rodrigo Muniz and the winger. The Everton keeper saved well with his feet to deny the substitute finding the net with his first touch and stopped the speedster with a crucial save late on.