Report & Highlights: Eagles downed by late Hammer strikes

Summary:

• Three changes for Palace, with Riad debuting.
• Lerma and Edouard in for Hughes and Kamada following Brentford defeat.
• 4: Souček heads wide when well-placed from a West Ham corner.
• 12: Kudus smashes wide for West Ham from 12 yards out.
• 16: Eze denied from close range by Areola.
• 17: Guéhi prevents Antonio from converting a close-range rebound.
• 20: Edouard places wide when played through by Mateta.
• 33: Pace of the game slows as heavy rain continues to fall.
• 41: Eze sweeps an effort against the crossbar from a short corner routine.
• HT: Palace 0-0 West Ham
• 56: Guéhi and Henderson make key interventions in the Palace box.
• 57: Edouard denied by close-range Kilman block.
• 67 – GOAL: Souček places West Ham into the lead with a scrappy effort.
• 72 – GOAL: Bowen smashes in a second on the counter.
• 74: Mateta pushes the ball wide from a low Sarr cross.
• 77: Sarr deflects Mitchell’s cross onto the outside of the post.
• 83: Henderson denies Fullkrüg in the closing stages.
• 90+4: Fullkrüg drags wide in injury time.
• FT: Palace 0-2 West Ham

Palace manager Oliver Glasner made three changes to his starting XI for the visit of the Hammers, with defender Chadi Riad making his competitive debut for the Eagles in place of the departed Joachim Andersen.

Jefferson Lerma and Odsonne Edouard also made their first starts of the season in place of the ill Will Hughes and Daichi Kamada, who began on the bench.

With both sides coming off the back of narrow 2-1 defeats on the opening day, chances abounded in the early stages; Tomas Souček was first to come close for the visitors, but headed wide when well-placed at. Acorner four minutes in.

Palace responded immediately with a display of their recent high-tempo crisp passing around the box. One such move found Ebere Eze on the edge of the box, but his strike deflected off the underside of a West Ham pair of shorts, and onto the roof of the net.

Mohammed Kudus, ever-lively on the left for the visitors, was next to go close. After his first attempt at a cross was well cut-out by Marc Guéhi, wearing the captain’s armband for Palace, the ball fell invitingly for the Ghana forward to smash goalwards – he did so from 12 yards but, thankfully, fired wide when he perhaps ought to have scored.

But Palace’s own dangermen continued to look lively. England internationals Adam Wharton and Eze combined superbly just after quarter-of-an-hour, the former’s incisive pass playing the latter in on goal, albeit at an angle. Only Alphonse Areola’s outstretched boot prevented Eze’s placed shot across goal from being the opener.

In keeping with the slick surface caused by heavy rainfall in South London, the game was being played at a frantic pace, with individual duels and slide tackles all over the pitch. Guéhi, in particular, was impressive in his tussles with Michail Antonio, denying the West Ham forward from close range just as he looked set to give his team the lead.

The momentum continued to swing between both sides, and Edouard was next to enjoy a clear sight at goal. Palace countered at pace through Wharton and Mateta, the latter sweeping it into the path of Edouard who raced towards goal but, under pressure from Max Kilman, swept his effort wide of the far post.

The pace of the game settled at that point into a more scrappy affair, both teams enjoying spells of possession without the earlier opportunities to show for it.

Nevertheless, Palace could consider themselves unfortunate not to go in with the lead, as on the stroke of half-time, a superb sweeping effort from Eze – smashing a short corner goalwards from the edge of the box – crashed against the upright, and away from goal.

Just as they did in the first period, the Hammers arguably started the second half the brighter of the two teams, with Guéhi and Dean Henderson both intervening in the space of two minutes to deny Souček clear sights at goal.

At the other end, Edouard continued to look lively, with only a last-ditch challenge from Kilman preventing his spin-and-shot from a tight angle.

Then, midway through the second-half, the opener – and it went to West Ham. Former Palace Academy graduate Aaron Wan-Bissaka, on as a substitute, won the ball in his own half and led a counter charge which culminated – via the aid of three or four unfortunate deflections – with Souček placing a scrappy effort past Henderson in goal.

Daichi Kamada and Ismaïla Sarr came on for competitive debuts, but their task was made all the more difficult three minutes later when Souček sprayed the ball out wide to Bowen, who cut inside his man and drilled a clinical low finish into Henderson’s bottom corner.

Palace responded with a succession of late attacks, but were unable to break down the visitors’ defence, as the Eagles await a first victory of the season.

Palace: Henderson (GK), Muñoz, Richards (Schlupp, 82), Guéhi, Riad, Mitchell, Lerma (Kamada, 63), Wharton, Eze, Mateta, Edouard (Sarr, 71).

Subs: Johnstone (GK), Ward, Holding, Clyne, Doucouré, Ahamada.

West Ham: Areola, Coufal (Wan-Bissaka, 63), Mavropanos, Kilman, Emerson (Cresswell, 89), Rodríguez, Souček (Álvarez, 78), Paquetá, Bowen, Kudus (Todibo, 89), Antonio (Füllkrug, 63).

Subs: Fabiański (GK), Ward-Prowse, Summerville, Ings.

As It Happened