West Ham Beat Crystal Palace 2-0
Second-half goals from Tomas Soucek and Jarrod Bowen earned West Ham a first Premier League win under new manager Julen Lopetegui and condemned Crystal Palace to their first home defeat since early April.
Soucek converted a loose ball inside the Palace area to give the Hammers the lead with their first effort on target, after fine work from substitute Aaron Wan-Bissaka down the right flank.
And Bowen netted his first-ever goal against Palace five minutes later, firing a left-footed drive inside the near post before celebrating in front of the jubilant Hammers supporters.
There were chances at both ends in an entertaining opening 20 minutes at Selhurst Park, with Michail Antonio and Mohammed Kudus going close for West Ham and Eberechi Eze and Odsonne Edouard missing golden opportunities for Palace.
Eze was denied by the woodwork late in the first half, his sweetly struck effort from a short-corner routine coming back off the crossbar with goalkeeper Alphonse Areola well beaten.
The second period was a less entertaining affair until Soucek broke the deadlock midway through the half, with Bowen all but ending Palace’s hopes of a route back into the game with his well-taken effort.
Having key players on bench drives ‘competitiveness’ – Lopetegui
West Ham were perhaps a little unfortunate to come away empty handed from last weekend’s game against Aston Villa, but they rode their luck at Selhurst Park – particularly in the first half – to claim a confidence-boosting three points.
Antonio nodded Soucek’s flick-on wide of the near post and Kudus struck the side-netting as the visitors started brightly, but they failed to register a shot on target in the first half and were lucky to go into half-time on level terms after Eze and Edouard fluffed their lines with only the goalkeeper to beat.
Former Palace defender Wan-Bissaka played a crucial role in the opening goal in the second half, collecting the ball deep inside his own half before laying it off to Bowen, who fed Lucas Paqueta. The Brazilian’s shot was blocked but Palace failed to clear the loose ball, allowing Soucek to side-foot home.
As Soucek and his team-mates celebrated near the away end, one of the advertising boards in front of the visiting supporters gave way, falling on top of a ball boy sitting in front.
The Czech Republic midfielder quickly spotted the danger and lifted up the board, allowing Bowen to pull the youngster – who appeared shaking up but unharmed – back to his feet.
“I managed to grab him out as quickly as possible,” Bowen told BBC Match of the Day. “It was just instinct. I’ve seen him after the game – he’s got my top and he’s smiling.”
The forward then put the seal on a hard-fought Hammers victory, shooting low into Henderson’s bottom left corner after running onto Max Kilman’s precise pass and sidestepping Palace defender Chadi Riad.
Not only was this West Ham’s first triumph over Palace since January 2022, it was also their first top-flight clean sheet in 20 matches, the last coming in a goalless draw with Brighton in January this year.
“We were able to compete and be resilient,” Lopetegui said. “They’ve only lost to [Manchester] City at home [under Oliver Glasner], so we knew it would be difficult.
“When you win, you need to be balanced. We have to improve and we have a lot to do.”
