Crystal Palace snatched a late winner at the death to move into the top half of the table, as West Ham United’s misery continues.
Patrick Vieira will count his lucky stars after a late goal from Michael Olise handed Crystal Palace their first away win of the season, beating West Ham United late in the match. It came at the expense of the Hammers, who continue to fall down the standings as their misery refuses to go away.
The game had a bright start, with the Hammers dominating the proceedings. They looked like the first scorers, and the opener came through Said Benrahma. The Algerian playmaker displayed scintillating footwork outside the box to wriggle past defenders, and the unstoppable shot was too much for Vicente Guaita.
Palace grew into the game, and four minutes before half-time, they capitalised on an error from Thilo Kehrer. Eberechi Eze robbed the defender of the ball after a slip and fed it to Wilfried Zaha. The Ivorian wriggled past a defender and smashed home the equaliser to bring the game alive.
Both teams had chances to restore their leads in the second half, as the game seemed destined for a draw. Olise turned up the heat at the death as his shot took a wicked deflection and went well beyond Lukasz Fabianski and into the net.
THAT moment.
Enjoy 🍿#CPFC | #WHUCRY pic.twitter.com/VqYicj7YLa
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) November 6, 2022
The win takes Palace up to 10th and pushes West Ham one place below to 15th on the table. It is a promising position for Viera’s side, who will be hoping to keep hold of the place going into the World Cup break. As for the Hammers, they need major repairing to their confidence and desperately need results to go their way.
West Ham United
Lukasz Fabianski: 6.5/10
Fabianski had a decent game by his performance and made some crucial saves. But the equaliser was beyond anything he could do, and so was the late winner, as no goalkeeper can save from such a wicked deflection.
Thilo Kehrer: 4/10
Had it not been for the error that led to the Palace equaliser, Kehrer would have had a decent game. His understanding of the right-back position increases, and so is his partnership with Jarrod Bowen on the wing. The error has to be highlighted in the context of the game because it gave Palace the impetus to get back in the contest and stave off West Ham.
Kurt Zouma: 6/10
Zouma kept things tight at the back and dealt with whatever Zaha & co offered at the back. It was a steady performance from the Frenchman, but he will be disappointed with the late Palace winner.
"We want to try and win here midweek and next Saturday"
David Moyes speaks after today's game 👇 pic.twitter.com/HV51qZMxCJ
— West Ham United (@WestHam) November 6, 2022
Craig Dawson: 7/10
Dawson had a good game, but some moments could have cost his side. One was the poor pass to Kehrer before the right back made the error for the leveller. The second was when he could have scored an own goal. However, his aggressive style at the back helped keep a tight lid on Zaha and the other Crystal Palace attackers.
Aaron Cresswell: 6/10
That was a good display from Cresswell, who sometimes struggled to cope with the different options like Olise and Ayew down the right wing. In the end, his deflection took the ball beyond Fabianski for the Crystal Palace winner at the death.
Declan Rice: 6.5/10
Rice had a relatively quiet game by his standards and put a worrying look on the supporters’ faces when he went down injured two weeks before the World Cup. The West Ham captain continued the game and did a decent job in midfield against Palace.
"I'm devastated. That was a game we had to win"
The captain discusses today's result 👇 pic.twitter.com/dUcrUXDgH7
— West Ham United (@WestHam) November 6, 2022
Tomas Soucek: 5/10
Soucek had a challenging game in the middle, as he was outclassed time and again by Cheick Doucoure. The Czech midfielder was sloppy in possession, and Moyes decided to take him off in the second half.
Jarrod Bowen: 6/10
If Gareth Southgate was watching Bowen in this game, there would be doubts about whether the England manager would pick him for his inconsistent displays this term. It was another one of those uninspired performances from Bowen, who continues to struggle with his rhythm.
Lucas Paqueta: 7/10
Paqueta was credited with the assist for the Benrahma opener, but it was the great work of the Algerian. Indeed, on his return game, the Brazilian was a bright spark for West Ham and helped proceedings in the final third.
Said Benrahma: 7/10
Benrahma is growing in confidence from recent Premier League games, and this was another one which would have boosted him. The winger took his goal well after wriggling through the Palace defenders and smashing it past Guaita.
A scorcher from Benrahma to silence the Crystal Palace fans! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/nYV92siW0W
— 90min (@90min_Football) November 6, 2022
Gianluca Scamacca: 4/10
Earlier in the season, when Michail Antonio underperformed, Moyes installed Scamacca as the starting striker for West Ham. The tables might have turned, as the manager will ponder reversing that decision after another below-par performance.
SUBSTITUTES
Michail Antonio: 6/10
Antonio was a bright spark since coming on and had a few chances to get going. Palace stood firm to his challenge and kept him shut.
Flynn Downes: 5/10
Downes replaced Soucek and could not affect anything in the game.
Manuel Lanzini: 4.5/10
A fruitless cameo from the Argentine, who could not change the scoreline as the Hammers looked around for options to get the lead back.
Pablo Fornals: N/A
A late substitution in search of a probable winner, but Fornals could not bring his midweek form into the fore.
Crystal Palace
Vicente Guaita: 6/10
Guaita had to be alert to West Ham’s attacks and made several decent stops. His handling of proceedings inside the box was good, but he could not do much about the Benrahma opener.
Nathaniel Clyne: 7/10
Clyne returned after a recent injury, and he had a bright time out on the pitch for a player in that state. Moved about on the right flank with purpose and contributed generously to the final third activity.
Joachim Andersen: 6/10
A decent performance from the central defender, who was alert to the threat posed by Paqueta and Scamacca. He controlled the latter well but could only do little about Paqueta and Benrahma’s plan, particularly for the goal.
Marc Guehi: 6/10
The Crystal Palace skipper had a rather indifferent afternoon but was strong when needed. Guehi stood firm over challenging moments but was generally solid at the back.
Tyrick Mitchell: 7/10
Mitchell was the more attack-minded of the full-backs, with his runs down the flank causing all sorts of problems for Kehrer and Bowen. Defensively, he seemed fine, taking care of the ineffective Bowen and containing his threat.
Good to see these two back today 🙌#CPFC | #WHUCRY pic.twitter.com/Q8E7oNQvqg
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) November 6, 2022
Cheick Doucoure: 7/10
Doucoure ran the midfield for Palace and put in a dominant shift in the middle. Soucek was no match for him, and with Rice not having his best day either, Doucoure took charge, which helped with the forward momentum for the away side.
Jeffrey Schlupp: 6/10
Not in his usual stride, and the energy was somewhat missing. Schlupp did well at times in midfield and while progressing the ball into the final third. He should have done better overall, but it won’t matter because Palace won eventually.
Jordan Ayew: 6.5/10
Ayew constantly troubled the West Ham defence from the right and caused problems with his energetic runs and ball skills. He produced decent chances for his teammates and proved a point in a somewhat different system deployed by Vieira.
Crystal Palace have gained more points from losing positions (12) than any other side in the Premier League this campaign.#CPFC
[@OptaJoe] pic.twitter.com/nryLB366IW
— The Athletic | Football (@TheAthleticFC) November 6, 2022
Michael Olise: 8/10
What a way to end the game, as Olise scored the winner to cap off a fine performance. He will count his lucky stars for the deflection off Cresswell for the winner, but otherwise, he was good in a different position behind the striker.
Eberechi Eze: 8/10
Eze was deployed on the left wing and did an excellent job, repeatedly troubling the Hammers’ defence. His pressure forced Kehrer into making an error leading to the equaliser from Zaha.
Wilfried Zaha: 8/10
Zaha was active in the central role and smashed home the equaliser as any proper striker would. His presence caused panic within the West Ham ranks at the back, and he will be pleased by the game’s outcome.
Wilfred Zaha’s game by numbers vs. West Ham:
88% pass accuracy
44 touches
3 ground duels won
2 shots on target
1 key pass
1 goal
1 assistStarted the comeback for Palace. 🦅 pic.twitter.com/Sssv0VuLZs
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) November 6, 2022
SUBSTITUTES
Luka Milivojevic: 7/10
Milivojevic replaced Doucoure in the second half and continued the excellent performance in the middle.
