David Moyes oversaw the first victory of his second Everton spell, as Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Iliman Ndiaye were on target for the hosts, who ended a six-match winless streak in the league.

Moyes' side struck twice inside the opening 30 minutes. Calvert-Lewin neatly jinked away from Archie Gray before slotting in his first goal in 16 league games, before Ndiaye's fine individual effort doubled their lead.

Gray's own-goal made it 3-0 in first-half stoppage-time, but Dejan Kulusevski gave Spurs a glimmer of hope when he lofted into an empty net on 77 minutes.

Ex-Toffee Richarlison then bravely turned in Mikey Moore's cross to ensure a nervy finish for Everton, who just about held on for a morale-boosting victory.

Spurs have taken just one point from their past six league games and have lost each of their first three Premier League matches of a calendar year for the first time since a run of seven in 1994.

Postecoglou's side also remains 15th on the league table, three places and eight points above the relegation zone.

"It is a difficult result," Postecoglou said. "We struggled to really get in the game in the first half, and that gave Everton momentum.

"We gave ourselves a mountain to climb, but the players certainly tried to claw the game back. We just fell short.

"We couldn't really take control of the game. We struggled to get any traction in terms of with and without the ball, and that allowed them to get in behind us. We had some chances where we probably should have capitalised early on, but in the end, it wasn't enough.

"If you look at the situation we're in, it will eventually dissipate. I certainly hope and believe it will. We'll give ourselves the opportunity to get consistency in performance and results.

"I certainly haven't lost belief or determination to turn it around, and the players showed in the second half that they haven't either."

The loss at Goodison Park was Spurs' 12th in the Premier League this season, making it only the sixth time in the club's history that it has lost as many as 12 of its first 22 matches of a league campaign and the first time since 1997-1998.

Postecoglou lost Dominic Solanke, Brennan Johnson and Yves Bissouma to injury in the build-up to the game, on top of a host of other concerns, and knows action in the transfer market is required.

"We are pretty stretched," he added. "We literally had 11 players fit enough to start the game. We weren't in total control of our organisation and Everton capitalised on that, and we paid the price for it.

"There will be urgency [in the transfer window], but it doesn't need me to say it, everybody can see that. I have no issues with how the club are going about it, they are working hard and trying to find solutions.

"These players need help, that is for sure. Hopefully, over the next 10 days or so, we'll find a solution. It is really tricky. We're not the only ones in the market. The club are trying hard."

Moyes, meanwhile, was especially delighted with the performance of his side in the first half.

"Today we did a really good job, first half especially," he said.

"We scored three, maybe could have scored a couple more, and then it was a case of could we get the fourth goal before they made it 3-1."

Moyes was pleased with the performance of Calvert-Lewin, who got Everton off and running with just his third league goal of the season.

"I thought he was more of a handful for the centre-halves, more aggressive in his play and in his approach. He played more like a proper centre-forward," Moyes said.

"He could have probably scored another one today, but that's a good start for him.

Calvert-Lewin himself was delighted to get on the scoresheet after a dry spell in front of goal.

It was his first goal in the Premier League since September 2024 when he scored against Aston Villa, putting an end to a 16-match run without a goal in the competition.

"I am really pleased," he said.

"It has been a tough patch for myself. I'm delighted with how we went today, we needed a win for the lads and the club.

"Everything clicked today. You go through periods where you're not hitting the back of the net or getting the rub of the green. We were defensively solid and built from that."