Crystal Palace 4-3 West Ham: Palace claim victory in seven-goal Premier League thriller with Hammers
/dnl.eurosport.com/sd/img/placeholder/eurosport_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
Updated 29/04/2023 at 14:32 GMT
What a match that was. Roy Hodgson's Crystal Palace managed to claim a dramatic victory in what ended up being a seven-goal thriller in their Premier League encounter with West Ham at Selhurst Park. West Ham raced into an early lead, but the hosts proved to be just too much for them with four goals in front of an ecstatic crowd in beautiful sunshine.
Eberechi Eze of Crystal Palace celebrates with teammates Joel Ward and Jeffrey Schlupp after scoring the team's fourth goal from a penalty kick during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and West Ham United at Selhurst Park
Image credit: Getty Images
Crystal Palace edged a seven-goal thriller against West Ham in the early Saturday Premier League match, taking them to the 40-point mark.
The Hammers took the lead through Tomas Soucek after Michael Olise headed the ball from a corner into his path.
Olise then set up two goals to put his side in front, sliding a ball through to Jordan Ayew to drive home and then crossing for the returning Wilfried Zaha to score.
The lead was extended when Jeffrey Schlupp robbed Soucek and ran through to coolly nutmeg Lukasz Fabianski, but the Hammers scored a fifth goal of the half before the break when Soucek flicked on a corner for Michael Antonio to head home.
The second half was a comparatively staid affair with Eberechi Eze going down from a slight tug of his shorts from Nayef Aguerd and got up to send the goalkeeper the wrong way from the spot.
West Ham never really looked like getting back in the game except from set-pieces and scored another from a corner when Soucek once more flicked on and this time Aguerd headed home from the goal-line.
The Hammers will remain a little nervous, five points clear of the bottom three ahead of the 3 o'clock Premier League games, but for Palace the gamble to restore Roy Hodgson as manager has proved an emphatic success with them now able to plan for another season in the Premier League.
TALKING POINT - A cliche-killer of an appointment
When Roy Hodgson took over from Patrick Vieira in February, the consensus would have been the 75-year-old would tighten up the Eagles, make them hard to beat, compromise on their attacking flair and with his renowned ultra-insistence on detail, ensure the set-piece goal differential would be put in Palace's favour, maybe giving them enough to stay up.
Instead Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze have never looked more impressive, while Jordan Ayew finally looks like a Premier League striker. And most surprising at all, their defending from set pieces has been awful in recent games, conceding a penalty in the defeat to Wolves and three in this game.
The perfectionist in Hodgson will undoubtedly be perturbed by this but four wins in six games, scoring 15 goals in the process, accruing almost a third of the points Palace have managed in the whole season, has been a remarkable achievement and a great return on the gamble from chairman Steve Parrish.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH - Michael Olise (Crystal Palace)
It was a strange game with the players at fault for goals in the game also contributed to their side's success at the other end of the pitch. Olise's befuddling choice to head the ball back into the centre of the box from the back post, setting up West Han's opener, would have haunted many a player.
Not this star though. He quickly began to dominate the game and turn it in Palace's favour. A lot of talk will be about where Zaha might end up this summer, but so long as Olise stays at Selhurst Park, Eagles fans will be confident of avoiding trouble next year.
PLAYER RATINGS
Crystal Palace: Johnstone 6; Ward 7, Andersen 6, Guehi 6, Mitchell 6; Eze 7, Doucoure 7, Schlupp 7; Olise 8*; Zaha 7, Ayew 7.
Subs: Eduoard 6, Milivojevic 6.
West Ham: Fabianski 6; Coufal 5, Zouma 6, Aguerd 6, Emerson 6; Rice 6, Soucek 7; Bowen 5, Paqueta 6, Fornals 6; Antonio 7.
Sub: Ogbonna 6, Cresswell 6, Benrahma 6, Ings 5, Cornet 6.
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
9' GOAL FOR WEST HAM! A corner reached the back post where Olise headed back to the six-yard box where Soucek fired into the roof of the net.
15' GOAL FOR PALACE! Ayew with a fantastic striker's finish. The ball was slipped into the inside right channel by Elise and the striker slotted it home giving the Hammers' stopper no chance.
20' GOAL FOR PALACE! Another set up from Olise he crossed in a low ball from the right flank which Ayew tries to backheel in but misses and Zaha at the back post side-foots into the opposite corner.
30' GOAL FOR PALACE! Schlupp brushed Soucek off the ball and calmly nutmegged Fabianski to make it 3-1.
36' GOAL FOR WEST HAM! Perfect corner set piece with Soucek flicking on at the front post and Antonio heading home at the back to pull a goal back.
63' PENALTY! A kick has been awarded for Aguerd pulling Eze's shorts in the box. There wasn't much contact and VAR are checking but I'm not sure this can be changed.
66' GOAL FOR PALACE! Eze sends Fabianski the wrong way from the spot.
73' GOAL FOR WEST HAM! A third goal from a corner. Soucek again flicking up at the near post and Aguerd beats Antonio to head in this time on the goal-line.
KEY STAT
- 13 - The number of points Roy Hodgson has earned from six games, compared to the 27 Patrick Vieira managed from 28.
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article