Sign up to the Independent's betting newsletter for the latest tips and offers Sign up to the Independent's betting newsletter
Crystal Palace 's fight to avoid relegation from the Premier League has been strengthened after they convincingly beat West Ham 3-1 .
It was a poor performance from West Ham and their fans booed them off the pitch at full-time.
Despite Palace’s early endeavour they had to wait until minutes before half-time to take the lead. After the corner came in from Jason Puncheon, West Ham failed to clear their lines and Glenn Murray headed goalwards. His headed looked on target but a wild swing at the ball by Aaron Cresswell sent it past Adrian.
Scott Dann doubled the lead when he was able to rise higher than Winston Reid and power his header past Adrian who got a desperate hand to it, and the third came when Puncheon found Murray who stooped and cleverly guided his header past Adrian.
But the striker was sent off minutes later for a second bookable offence when he went into a challenge very strongly on Reid, and West Ham were given a lifeline on 76 minutes when Enner Valencia, the most threatening player in claret and blue, struck home from 25 yards.
So how did the players perform?
Click on the gallery below to find out.
Show all 23 1 /23West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Adrian - 6 May have done better to get to Palace’s opener but can’t be blamed for the second and third goals.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Carl Jenkinson - 6 He should have done better when he had a chance to make it 3-2 after finding himself one-on-one with Speroni. Showed plenty of urgency when chasing the game.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Winston Reid - 7 Good pressure from him on Glenn Murray to force the striker to fire wide from close range in the first half. Assured performance. One of the only West Ham players who can be pleased with his display.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings James Tomkins - 6 Lack of physicality exposed somewhat by the bullish Murray. Also lacked composure.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Aaron Cresswell - 5 Gifted Palace the lead when he wildly swung at a Murray header. A little naive today.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Alex Song - 4 Showed a number of poor touches. A little sloppy in midfield. Replaced by Nene.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Mark Noble - 6 Sharp in midfield. His free-kick rattled the bar but had Speroni beaten.
Getty images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Cheikhou Kouyaté - 6 Took a nasty knock when tackled by Murray and found it difficult to find his rhythm.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Stewart Downing - 6 Never stopped looking for ways to progress play even if his final ball wasn’t perfect.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Diafra Sakho - 6 Showed initiative to take control of the ball early and was a threat early on. Unfortunately for him, Dann and Delaney quickly worked out what he was doing.
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Enner Valencia - 7 Tried hard to chase the game when West Ham went 3-0 down. His goal with 15 minutes left came far too late to aid West Ham’s attempt at getting back into the game.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Julian Speroni - 7 In control of his back four. Rarely put under pressure. Beaten by a strong Valencia shot.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Joel Ward - 6 He handled the West Ham two of Valencia and Sakho with intelligence. He’ll be frustrated with his booking, though.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Scott Dann - 7 Got up very well above Reid at the far post to power his header past Adrian. A very strong performance.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Damien Delaney - 6 Possibly Palace’s only weak link here. He found it rather difficult to stay close to Valencia.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Martin Kelly - 6 Downing tended to cut inside meaning that Kelly wasn’t under any direct pressure. Possibly could be accused of being drawn into the middle too often.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Jordon Mutch - 5 Replaced by James McArthur early on. Appeared to have pulled his left thigh muscle.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Mile Jedinak - 6 Won the battle between him and Kouyate. He read the game very well and didn’t dive in.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings James McArthur - 6 Replaced the injured Mutch and partnered Jedinak in central midfield. Helped the midfield to stay compact.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Jason Puncheon - 9 One of Palace’s most influential attacking players against West Ham. Assisted all three goals and was a constant threat.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Wilfred Zaha - 6 Pushed out to the right wing and he failed to have a strong enough effect on the game. Rarely gave Cresswell anything to worry about. Replaced by Ameobi with 20 minutes to go.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Glenn Murray - 8 Scored Palace’s third goal with a very clever glancing header. Daft to have got himself sent off when he was shown a second yellow after a poor foul on Reid.
Getty Images
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 3 player ratings Yannick Bolasie - 6 He gave plenty for Jenkinson to worry about it the first half but faded in the second.
Getty Images
Do you agree with our ratings? Leave your thoughts in the comment box below.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies