Gueye along with Keane find the net as Everton defeat Fulham

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

Everton’s second victory in nine matches was fairly straightforward as Fulham showed why their leading scorer this season is goals gifted by opponents. Aside from a brief flurry in the latter period, the visitors were kept quiet all match by the home team's greater urgency and technical ability. Moyes’ team had three efforts disallowed for infringements, but a poacher’s finish from the midfielder in first-half stoppage time and Keane’s second-half header ensured there would be no comeback for the former Everton manager.

No one needed a goal more than Thierno Barry, the Goodison Park attacker who had gone 10 Premier League outings without testing the goalkeeper after his big-money move from Villarreal and missed 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 the Fulham keeper's crossbar when found by his teammate's excellent delivery.

The home side dominated the early exchanges and the visiting shot-stopper pushed over James Garner’s long-range set-piece, given after Sasa Lukic was booked for hauling down Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The Serbian tripped the identical opponent again before halftime but the official, the man in charge, rightly ignored Everton appeals for a sending off. The Fulham boss was taking no further chances, though, and substituted the midfielder at the interval.

The striker believed his luck had finally turned when sliding in at the back post to convert a low cross by Gueye. But the elation of a maiden strike 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 supported the original call. The forward's bad luck may have persisted in the final third, but his all-round performance validated the manager's choice to stick with him. His movement and work-rate kept busy the opposition's back line and contributed to the hosts the edge all game.

The Londoners came into the contest slowly with the Norwegian and the former Everton midfielder Alex Iwobi combining effectively in midfield, but the early danger from the visitors was limited. The Mexican striker shot tamely at Jordon Pickford when teed up inside the area by his teammate and sent a set-piece from a promising location directly at the Everton wall. That summed up their attacking output.

The Blues, inspired by Dewsbury-Hall and Ndiaye, had a second goal chalked off for an infringement when Leno parried a effort from Keane and the captain fired home the loose ball. The home captain had moved offside when nodding down the winger's cross in the buildup. But Everton’s next effort past the keeper did stand. The left-back delivered a perfect ball to the back post when found in space on the left by the youngster. Tarkowski met it with a powerful nod off the crossbar and, though the midfielder fluffed his lines, his midfield partner Gueye finished from point-blank. The relief inside the ground was evident.

The home side had a third goal disallowed early in the second half after the playmaker scored from a further excellent Mykolenko cross. Ndiaye had laid off the ball into Barry, who was in an offside position when competing with Joachim Anderson for the touch that fell to the Everton midfielder. The team would have to wait until the 81st minute for the security of a two-goal lead. Dewsbury-Hall was the creator with a corner that Keane glanced over Leno. He scored with the back of his shoulder, and Fulham’s appeals for handball were dismissed by the video official.

Silva’s side carried more of a threat following the substitutions of the forward, Rodrigo Muniz and Adama Traoré. The Everton keeper saved well with his feet to prevent Muniz finding the net with his initial involvement and stopped the speedster with another important stop late on.