Mitchell’s volley secures Palace victory as set‑piece worries deepen for West Ham

Crystal Palace prised a controlled 2-1 win from a fraught London derby, exploiting West Ham United’s ongoing vulnerability at corners and piling further pressure on Graham Potter. Jean‑Philippe Mateta struck from close range on 37 minutes after Alphonse Areola had pushed Marc Guehi’s header against the bar, Jarrod Bowen briefly reignited the hosts with a glancing equaliser, and Tyrick Mitchell settled it with a ruthless volley as Palace kept their unbeaten start intact.

West Ham, who failed to register a first‑half shot, rallied after the interval but let the moment pass. Chris Richards cleared Lucas Paqueta’s effort off the line at 1-1, and once Adam Wharton’s cross wasn’t dealt with, Mitchell’s finish restored Palace’s lead. From there Oliver Glasner’s side showed the composure the occasion demanded, closing out a game played to the soundtrack of protests and dissent inside and outside the stadium.

A plan built on corners, and a breakthrough at the seventh

Set pieces framed the afternoon. West Ham’s chronic uncertainty at corners has been a season‑long issue, and although Potter recalled Areola for the dropped Mads Hermansen and spoke of working on dead‑ball detail all week, Palace made those situations their primary route to goal. The visitors went after deliveries, with Daichi Kamada testing Areola early and Palace winning a succession of corners.

In fairness to the hosts, they coped with the first six corners, but the seventh proved decisive. Kamada’s 37th‑minute delivery led to Guehi climbing to head against the bar under pressure; Areola’s touch diverted the ball up, only for Mateta to react first and nod into an unguarded net. The goal capped a half in which West Ham mustered no shots and never built sustained pressure.

Bowen’s equaliser ignites belief, then slips away

The restart brought volatility. Palace almost made it 2-0 within seconds when Maxence Lacroix met Wharton’s corner and thudded his header against the bar. Instead, the stadium erupted four minutes later when El Hadji Malick Diouf’s corner was glanced in by Bowen at the near post on 49 minutes, a goal that instantly changed the temperature and tempo.

For a spell, West Ham surged. The pressing tightened, passes zipped into feet, and Paqueta thought he had forced the turnaround, only for Richards to backpedal and hook off the line with Sam Johnstone beaten. Yet that flurry, energetic as it was, yielded no second goal, and Palace’s structure quickly reasserted itself.

Mitchell’s decisive strike and Palace’s calm closure

The winner came from another cross West Ham failed to clear. Wharton, steady on the right, sent in a teasing centre that should have been headed away; instead Konstantinos Mavropanos mistimed his attempt and the ball dropped for Mitchell, who adjusted superbly to volley in with his weaker right foot. Areola was beaten before he could reset.

From there Palace were unflustered. Glasner’s side denied the hosts territory or rhythm, and crucially, West Ham fashioned no late chances of note. The visitors’ mix of aerial threat and defensive order was the afternoon’s defining contrast, underscoring why they continue their unbeaten start while West Ham’s home form remains grim.

Chants, banners and the pressure on Potter

The football unfolded against a raw backdrop. Around 3,000 West Ham supporters protested before kick‑off, with banners and chants aimed at the club’s leadership, and there were more cries of “sack the board” inside the ground. The team were booed off at half‑time and again at full‑time, the mood curdled by another derby defeat.

Potter, serenaded with “you’re getting sacked in the morning” by the away end and some home fans, cut a restrained figure. He said the squad had focused on set‑piece work during the week and insisted he still feels the board’s backing, adding: “Everyone at the club feels that pressure because the situation isn’t what we want.” Palace, meanwhile, left east London with the points and their poise, their control after retaking the lead the truest mark of a team in rhythm.