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Zaza (7.5/10) Put Up Great Shift – Find Out How The Other West Ham Stars Fared Against Crystal Palace

A solitary strike from Manuel Lanzini proved enough for Slaven Bilic on an intense evening in South London as West Ham United beat Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

In the build-up to this clash, the Croatian boss, who steered the Hammers to a seventh-place finish in the Premier League last season was under a great deal of pressure, having overseen five defeats in seven games this campaign. The much-anticipated move to the London Stadium hadn’t gone exactly to plan either and it was up to him to orchestrate a good performance against Alan Pardew’s side, who were unbeaten in five league games leading to this one.

Lanzini scored, what ultimately turned out to be the winner following a quick move down the left-hand side. Aaron Cresswell, who had earned plaudits for his displays at left-back returned to the first team after a lengthy absence and set up the goal with a sparkling cross.

For Palace, there was little respite as they looked surprisingly disjointed. They had a ray of hope when star striker Christian Benteke was brought down by Pedro Obiang and the referee pointed to the spot. The decision was controversial though as Benteke appeared to tumble outside the penalty area.

The Belgian striker fluffed his lines and scooped a shot horribly wide of the mark to let Bilic and his men off the hook. From that point onwards, it was a tale of defence versus attack as both teams made strides. Despite Cresswell’s harsh and debatable sending off for two bookable offences in the second half, West Ham held on to secure a much-needed victory and climbed out of the relegation zone.

Here is how the Hammers fared at Selhurst Park:

Adrian (7/10):

Made a fine save from a Wilfried Zaha’s attempt but was largely untroubled thanks to the strong shift put in by his defenders.

Winston Reid (7/10):

Was made to work hard by Benteke but was successful in nullifying his aerial threat on a couple of occasions.

Angelo Ogbonna (6.5/10):

Dealt with the threat of Townsend and Zaha effectively. Got outmuscled on one instance by Benteke and brought down the Belgian to concede a penalty. Ought to have been thankful for the striker’s wastefulness.

Pedro Obiang (6.5/10):

Looked solid at the back.

Mikhail Antonio (6.5/10):

Worked well as a right wing-back and made darting runs down his flank. Almost scored with another headed attempt but was denied by Andros Townsend on the line.

Aaron Cresswell (6.5/10):

Looked lively on his return to first-team action and set up the goal with a brilliant run and cross down the left-hand side. Was rather unfortunate to see red for two questionable bookings.

Cheikhou Kouyate (6/10):

Would have hoped to pull the strings better in midfield. The switch from a flat back four to three in defence will alter his gameplay though.

Mark Noble (7/10):

Put in a captain’s performance in the middle of the park. Wore down the likes of Joe Ledley and Yohan Cabaye.

Dimitri Payet (7/10):

Wasn’t at his creative best but helped set up the only goal of the game. Found pockets of space playing in a more central role.

Manuel Lanzini (8/10):

Arguably West Ham’s Man of the Match, Lanzini scored a great goal and looked threatening in attack. Set up his fellow colleagues on a few occasions and came close to doubling his side’s advantage.

Simone Zaza (7.5/10):

Did not profit from any situation but put in a good shift up front. Won several aerial duels and tested the centre-back pairing of Joel Ward and James Tomkins.

Substitutes:

Edimilson Fernandes (6/10):

Came on and followed his manager’s instructions, given Cresswell’s unfortunate dismissal.

Harvard Nordtveit (N/A):

Barely had time to make an impact.

Jonathan Calleri (N/A):

Came on to help see West Ham through.

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