David Moyes was reluctantly holding court on a cramped staircase on the top floor of the Goodison Road stand. With every question, he tried to take a step downwards, as if to indicate that, after another chastening defeat, he was not in a mood to hang around. And then someone asked him if the stalemate over his contract negotiations might be contributing to the uncertainty around Everton at present. To everybody’s surprise, he stopped and replied that, yes, it might well be the case.

On an afternoon when Liverpool returned to the top of the Barclays Premier League, for a couple of hours at least, and Fernando Torres offered a little-needed reminder of his prowess with two well-taken goals in the second half, Evertonian misery seemed unlikely to dominate the news agenda. But Moyes’s unusually frank response to questions about his contract was intriguing at a time when his team are struggling, with defeat in this of all fixtures adding to their problems before their Uefa Cup first round, second leg away to Standard Liège on Thursday.

Moyes said that his contract is “something that needs to be addressed”, that “it has to be sorted” and that “it’s not a matter of compromise”. He made clear his view that concerns over his future, with only nine months left on his existing deal, had not had a direct impact on results, but added that “when the manager’s position is uncertain, then uncertainty can come into the club. It doesn’t help the situation.”

The Everton hierarchy will be unhappy at Moyes’s suggestion that the ball is in their court, which technically it is after he sent their last offer back to the boardroom with a series of suggested amendments. But more than that, they, and indeed their manager, will be troubled by matters on the pitch, with an all too predictable derby defeat compounding the sense among Everton’s supporters that a rot is setting in at Goodison Park.

Even during their more promising moments on Saturday – and there were not many of them, with Yakubu Ayegbeni having one of those afternoons when he looks uninterested – Everton seemed like the poor relations of Merseyside football. Liverpool were assured rather than spectacular, but they were comfortably the better team throughout. Steven Gerrard ran the game from midfield, but there was greater quality throughout the visiting team, from the centre of defence, where Jamie Carragher and Martin Skrtel won everything, to the attack, where Robbie Keane combined well with Torres.

Keane has yet to score in ten appearances for Liverpool since his £20.3 million move from Tottenham Hotspur in July, but the No 7 shirt is not weighing as heavily on his shoulders as it was a month ago. Phil Jagielka, the Everton defender, suggested afterwards that Keane’s industry and clever movement had made him a more troublesome opponent. You could understand what he was getting at, even though his argument was flawed because Torres, kept quiet for the most part of the match, had scored two goals and would have claimed a six-minute hat-trick had Dirk Kuyt not been penalised for a foul on Joleon Lescott in the 65th minute.

By that stage Liverpool were 2-0 up, Torres slamming home a volley from Keane’s perfect left-foot cross before beating Tim Howard again with an instant shot after what might have been a goal-saving tackle from Jagielka on Kuyt. Both strikes showed the instinct of a born goal-scorer and it was hard not to avoid making comparisons with Yakubu, who, having sidestepped a challenge by Skrtel early in the second half, made the absurd decision to forfeit a clear shooting opportunity to fling himself to the ground in search of a penalty. All he got for his troubles was a yellow card.

That is the kind of situation Moyes is faced with at the moment: stupid decisions in the heat of the moment from experienced professionals who should know better. Tim Cahill made another late in the game when he was sent off, however harshly, for a lunge at Xabi Alonso. At least, with Newcastle United the visiting team on Sunday, it should not be too long before Everton put their Goodison Park blues behind them.

Everton ratings (4-2-3-1)

T Howard 5 A Hibbert 6 P Jagielka 7 J Yobo 6 J Lescott 6 P Neville 5 M Fellaini 5 M Arteta 6 T Cahill 4 L Osman 4 Yakubu Ayegbeni 4 Substitutes: L Saha 6 (for Hibbert, 63min). Not used: C Nash, L Baines, S Castillo, N Valente, J Rodwell, J Vaughan. Next: Newcastle (h).

Liverpool ratings (4-4-1-1)

J M Reina 6 Á Arbeloa 6 M Skrtel 8 J Carragher 8 A Dossena 6 D Kuyt 6 X Alonso 6 S Gerrard 7 A Riera 6 R Keane 6 F Torres 8 Substitutes: F Aurélio 5 (for Riera, 67), Lucas Leiva (for Alonso, 86), J Pennant (for Keane, 86). Not used: D Cavalieri, S Hyypia, D Agger, R Babel. Next: Man City (a).

Referee M Riley Attendance 39,574