It would be foolish to read too much into one game, but while the manner of Blackburn Rovers’ victory on Saturday went a long way towards dispelling talk of dressing-room unrest at Ewood Park and marked a memorable first match in the top flight managerial career of Paul Ince, it also served to bring into sharp focus the extent of the problems confronting David Moyes, the Everton manager.

As Blackburn’s players rushed to congratulate Ince at the final whistle seconds after completing a stirring comeback, Moyes headed for the tunnel amid a chorus of jeers from a significant minority of Everton supporters.

Moyes deserves better. Only three months ago he was being praised after guiding Everton to fifth in the Barclays Premier League, but the manager faces a critical fortnight that could easily come to define the Merseyside club’s season.

Six or seven new players are needed to bolster a threadbare squad, but, with the transfer window due to close on September 1, even Moyes is unsure if it is possible to acquire such numbers in such a short space of time, especially when the emphasis is on quality, not quantity.

Of the 14 senior players in Everton’s squad, four are injured, while James Vaughan and Victor Anichebe – who, at 20, are still raw in terms of experience – are unavailable because of injury and participation at the Olympic Games respectively. As a result, Moyes had to call seven teenagers into his squad against Blackburn and hand one of them, Jack Rodwell, 17, his first senior start.

The prospect of playing a season heavily undermanned appears to be having an impact upon some of Moyes’s proven performers. On Saturday, Joleon Lescott was a shadow of the player that he was last term – witness the manner in which the defender allowed Roque Santa Cruz to brush him off and score Blackburn’s second – Phil Neville seemed overburdened with the extra responsibilities now placed on his captaincy and Yakubu Ayegbeni conceded a needless free kick from which André Ooijer scored Blackburn’s winner.

Everton lost only two matches in which they led in all competitions at Goodison Park last season, but they never looked like holding on to a 2-1 lead against Blackburn after coming from behind courtesy of goals from Mikel Arteta and Yakubu.

Blackburn’s third goal should never have stood – Ryan Nelsen was off-side before he headed Stephen Warnock’s free kick against a post from which Ooijer stroked home the rebound – but the away team were good value for three points.

Ince expressed his disappointment that some Everton fans appeared to turn on Moyes, but was happy to answer his own critics. “There probably are people [who want to see me fail], but that’s football, that’s life, and it makes me more determined to make sure we do well,” he said.

Everton(4411): T Howard 6 – P Neville 4, J Yobo 5, J Lescott 4, N Valente 5 (sub: J Baxter, 79min) – M Arteta 7, J Rodwell 5, P Jagielka 5, L Baines 5 – L Osman 5 – Yakubu Ayegbeni 6. Substitutes not used: I Turner, L Jutkiewicz, D Gosling, J P Kissock, J Wallace, Agard. Booked: Yobo, Yakubu. Next: West Bromwich Albion (a).

Blackburn Rovers (4-4-2): P Robinson 5 – A Ooijer 6, C Samba 7, R Nelsen 6, S Warnock 5 – S Reid 6, A Mokoena 5, D Dunn 7 (sub: Tugay Kerimoglu, 90), M G Pedersen 6 (sub: K Treacy, 76) – J Roberts 5 (sub: B McCarthy, 83), R Santa Cruz 8. Substitutes not used: J Brown, C Villanueva, D Simpson, M Derbyshire.Booked: Warnock, Ooijer. Next: Hull City (h).

Referee: A Marriner. Attendance: 38,675. Arteta 45, Yakubu 64 Dunn 22, Santa Cruz 66, Ooijer 90

Classic Times Fantasy Football is back. Sign up for £3 a team or 3 for £6