Everton powered into a 2-0 lead for the third time this season but managed to see it out on this occasion with a professional performance on the road against newly-promoted Ipswich Town.

Iliman Ndiaye struck in the 17th minute to give the Toffees the lead after Dominic Calvert-Lewin had fluffed his lines once again in a one-on-one situation and Michael Keane doubled the advantage with a terrific finish later in the first half.

Where Sean Dyche’s men caved from such a strong position against Bournemouth and Aston Villa, this time they ground out the points, keeping a second successive clean sheet and putting some daylight between themselves and the bottom three.

Jarrad Branthwaite returned to full training earlier in the week but was, sensibly, withheld from the squad for the trip to East Anglia, allowing Keane to continue his partnership with James Tarkowski at centre half.

Vitalii Mykolenko made a welcome return at left-back while Ashley Young resumed full-back duties on the opposite side and Idrissa Gueye was chosen in the middle alongside Abdoulaye Doucouré, somewhat harshly at the expense of Orel Mangala.

Everton were unable to assert control on the game from the first whistle and they probably should have been a goal down after just five minutes when Kieran McKenna’s side successfully played around the Blues’ press and carved out a gilt-edged chance.

Wes Burns was played in down the Tractor Boys’ right flank, he cut the ball back invitingly for Jack Clarke but with the goal at his mercy he made a mess of the contact and failed to hit the target.

Two minutes later, an even better chance fell to Calvert-Lewin at the other end when he easily intercepted a weak pass from Kalvin Phillips leaving him with just Arijenet Muric to beat but his shot deflected off the keeper and behind.

Not long after that, Ndiaye turned his man impressively and laid it across to Dwight McNeil but, inexplicably, he took a touch to set himself when a first-time strike was there for the taking and Clarke nipped across him to take it off him as he belatedly pulled the trigger.

When Ipswich played themselves into trouble again just past the quarter-hour mark, though, it led to Everton taking the lead. Muric could only side-foot the ball over his own byline and when the resulting corner ended up with Jack Harrison, neither Dara O’Shea nor Burns could deal with his deep cross.

Burns dallied on O’Shea’s header and Ndiaye seized the loose ball, cutting onto his right foot and rifling a shot high into the net to make it 1-0.

Calvert-Lewin forced a one-handed save from Muric when he swivelled onto McNeil’s pass as the visitors pressed for a second but it looked as though they were going to be pegged back midway through the first half when they were awarded a penalty by referee Michael Oliver.

Omari Hutchison’s free-kick after he had been chopped down in full flight by Keane had ended up with a corner for the home side that Everton only half cleared. When the ball ended up back in their box, McNeil was robbed trying to dribble his way out and Clarke went down, apparently fouled by the Blues’ forward.

Video Assistant Referee, Graham Scott, eventually advised Oliver to review the incident on the pitch-side monitor and the correct decision — that Clarke had slipped and kicked McNeil’s foot — was reached, with the penalty overturned.

Despite the scare, Everton remained the likelier of the two sides to add to the scoreline, and after McNeil’s shot had hit Calvert-Lewin on its way towards goal, Dyche’s side won another corner when Cameron Burgess was forced to glance Harrison’s cross behind.

That set-piece was worked short, Tarkowski’s header back into the six-yard box was only cleared to McNeil on the edge of the area and after ghosting away from two men with some lovely footwork, he found Keane who belted home a marvellous effort from a very tight angle.

The half ended with direct free-kick opportunities for both teams, Phillips floating his effort over the crossbar and Young’s curling harmlessly into Muric’s arms after Harrison had been fouled.

The first 15 minutes of the second period saw Everton continue to have the upper hand but without them being able to make that dominance pay. Again lacking sufficient numbers in support, Calvert-Lewin’s square cross was cut out by Burgess, the striker then toed Doucoure’s prodded pass wide from close range with his weaker left foot while Ndiaye couldn’t capitalise on another Ipswich slip in midfield when his shot lacked power and Muric made the save low to his right.

McNeil had one more effort saved after Everton counter-attacked on the hour mark which ushered in a final half hour where Ipswich assumed the upper hand but, despite much huffing and puffing, they couldn’t find a breakthrough. Indeed, it was the Blues who should have wrapped things up late on but Calvert-Lewin again shot too close to Muric with just the keeper to beat. 

The in-form Liam Delap had an effort of his own blocked and then rattled a shot over, Hutchison’s strike was deflected narrowly past the far post and Conor Chaplin finally had the hosts’ first shot on target 10 minutes from time when he met a bobbling corner but could only fire straight at Jordan Pickford.

Apart from a low Jack Taylor shot that the England keeper saved with an out-stretched glove as the game ticked into stoppage time, that was as close as Ipswich came to scoring and Everton comfortably saw out their first away victory in 10 months.