A dismal performance from West Ham, marked by Konstantinos Mavropanos’ red card and a penalty conceded by Lukasz Fabianski, exposed the mounting issues Graham Potter is facing as Crystal Palace triumphed 2-0 at the London Stadium, moving above West Ham in the Premier League standings.
Having been lucky to secure a win over Fulham midweek, West Ham’s display against Palace was a harsh reality check.
Their overly cautious approach in the first half proved costly, with not a single shot on target.
Their best opportunity came from Lucas Paqueta, but his wild shot epitomized their attacking struggles.
Defensively, West Ham struggled to contain Jean-Philippe Mateta. Max Kilman gave him too much space, allowing Mateta to fire a low shot into the corner early in the second half, scoring his third consecutive Premier League goal.
Mavropanos was penalized with two yellow cards, the second of which came just after Mateta’s opener.
Then, with just a minute to go, Fabianski fouled Eddie Nketiah in the box after Mateta had set up his strike partner.
Nketiah converted the penalty in the 89th minute to confirm Palace’s victory, which lifts them to 12th place.
While West Ham’s position is 10 points clear of the relegation zone, the boos that echoed at full-time spoke volumes about the mood.
Injuries to key players such as Jarrod Bowen, Niclas Fullkrug, Crysencio Summerville, and Michail Antonio provide some context, but with tough fixtures ahead against Aston Villa and Chelsea, West Ham’s problems may only deepen.
