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David Moyes had made clear before Fulham's visit that the responsibility for scoring goals should not fall solely on the team's strikers. “I want more goals from my centre-halves and midfielders as well,” he insisted. Idrissa Gueye and the English defender rose to the occasion, securing a merited victory over the opposition's ineffective team.

The Merseyside club's second victory in nine outings was largely untroubled as Fulham demonstrated why their leading scorer this season is goals gifted by opponents. Apart from a short spell in the second half, the visitors were contained throughout by the home team's greater urgency and technical ability. The Blues had three efforts ruled out for infringements, but a close-range strike from the midfielder in added time before the break and Keane’s late conversion made sure there would be no reprieve for the former Everton manager.

No player needed a goal more than Thierno Barry, the Goodison Park forward who had gone 10 Premier League outings without testing the goalkeeper after his £27m summer arrival from Villarreal and missed a gilt-edged chance to put his team 2-0 up at Sunderland earlier in the week. The youngster directed the first opportunity of the game over Bernd Leno’s goal frame when picked out by Iliman Ndiaye’s excellent delivery.

The home side controlled the opening stages and the Fulham goalkeeper tipped over James Garner’s 30-yard free-kick, awarded after Sasa Lukic was booked for fouling the Everton midfielder. Lukic brought down the identical opponent later in the half but the official, Andrew Madley, correctly waved away home protests for a sending off. Silva was taking no further chances, though, and substituted the midfielder at the interval.

Barry thought his luck had changed at last when sliding in at the back post to turn in a low cross by Gueye. But the elation of a maiden strike was wiped out by an assistant referee’s flag. Ndiaye was in an illegal position when going for the delivery, and missing, and the video assistant referee supported the original call. Barry’s misfortune may have continued in front of goal, but his all-round performance justified the manager's choice to stick with him. His runs and work-rate kept busy Fulham’s central defenders and contributed to Everton the edge throughout.

Fulham came into the contest gradually with the Norwegian and the ex-Goodison player the Nigerian working well in midfield, but the early danger from the visitors was limited. The Mexican striker shot tamely at Jordon Pickford when teed up in the box by Iwobi and sent a free-kick from a promising location straight into the defensive barrier. And that was it.

The Blues, driven on by the midfielder and the forward, had a another strike chalked off for offside when the Fulham goalkeeper saved a Keane header and James Tarkowski fired home the rebound. The home captain had moved offside when nodding down Jack Grealish’s cross in the build-up. But Everton’s third attempt past Leno counted. Vitalii Mykolenko delivered a perfect ball to the far post when left unmarked on the left by Tim Iroegbunam. The defender met it with a thumping header off the crossbar and, though the midfielder mishit the rebound, his midfield partner Gueye finished from close range. The sense of release inside Hill Dickinson Stadium was evident.

Everton had a further effort ruled out after the restart after Dewsbury-Hall scored from a further excellent delivery from the left. Ndiaye had laid off the delivery into Barry, who was in an offside position when competing with the Fulham defender for the touch that fell to the Everton midfielder. Everton would have to wait until the closing stages for the comfort of a second goal. The provider was the creator with a set-piece that Keane glanced over Leno. He did so with the upper body, and Fulham’s appeals for handball were rejected by VAR.

Fulham posed more danger following the substitutions of the forward, the Brazilian and Adama Traoré. The Everton keeper made a fine stop with his legs to deny the substitute scoring with his first touch and stopped the speedster with another important stop in the dying moments.