West Ham 1-1 Crystal Palace: Odsonne Edouard capitalises on Konstantinos Mavropanos’ mistake to score equaliser for the Eagles following Mohammed Kudus’ opener

• Odsonne Edouard equalised as Crystal Palace drew away to West Ham United 
• West Ham had taken the lead in the 13th minute through Mohammed Kudus
• We expected perfection from VAR – we haven’t got it: Listen to It’s All Kicking Off 

Crystal Palace took no notice of that ancient adage about bewaring Greeks and gifts. Konstantinos Mavropanos’ offering was so generous that Odsonne Edouard was never going to turn it down.

Edouard equalised after Mavropanos’ no-look back pass which was shockingly short. This moment of madness proved costly for West Ham as they looked to be cruising towards a win inspired by Mohammed Kudus.

Not even ‘Moyesy Time’ could do it for West Ham on this occasion. They had won their previous three games courtesy of winners from Tomas Soucek, all arriving in the 88th minute or later.

Soucek’s late show made it 3-2 against Nottingham Forest, 2-1 against Burnley, 1-0 against Backa Topola. Though the 28-year-old Czech could find a breakthrough here, it was little wonder he wore the captain’s armband in the absence of Kurt Zouma, missing due to a ‘private family matter’.

Soucek led the team out of the tunnel and walking alongside Alphonse Areola was Oscar Fairs, one of the club’s under-14 goalkeepers who is currently undergoing treatment for a brain tumour. It was a moment to cherish for the young man who holds a London Stadium season ticket.

Odsonne Edouard celebrates after scoring Crystal Palace’s equaliser against West Ham

Edouard got the equaliser for Palace in the 53rd minute as his side secured a point

Mohammed Kudus was delighted after putting West Ham in front against Palace

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Once underway, the game’s first chance fell to the visitors in the 12th minute when Joachim Andersen’s header across was hooked wide by Edouard. Mavropanos had a handful of his shirt, but not enough to warrant a VAR intervention.

Edouard’s miss proved costly as, barely a minute later, West Ham led 1-0 thanks to the smoothest of moves which started and ended with Kudus taking advantage of Will Hughes.

Kudus flicked the ball over Hughes in midfield before it made its way from Lucas Paqueta to James Ward-Prowse, whose 50-yard cross-field pass found Vladimir Coufal. He cut the ball back into the box, where Kudus had burst in behind Hughes to produce a first-time finish, helped beyond Sam Johnstone by a slight deflection from Marc Guehi.

All was not lost for Palace. They had conceded the opening goal in each of their past four Premier League victories over West Ham so a comeback was not out of the question.

After half hour, it had been the Kudus show. Sometimes he would indulge in an unnecessary trick. But then the 23-year-old Ghanaian is an attacker addicted to entertaining and at times, the London Stadium needed his unpredictability to increase its volume.

In the 34th minute, Jordan Ayew won a cheap free-kick when Kudus was deemed to have fouled him. Andersen’s rocket struck Edson Alvarez in the West Ham wall and sent the ball into a spin. At first, it looked to be heading in, but it bounced wide narrowly wide.

After half-time, there was a cross from Kudus and a swing and a miss from Soucek. It flew into Johnstone’s goal nonetheless and VAR Peter Bankes had work to do. Though Soucek did not touch the ball, he interfered with play from an offside position and so the scoreline stayed as is.

Until the 53rd minute, that is. Edouard was still wondering how he had not scored a header seconds earlier when he was gifted a run through on goal by Mavropanos. The 25-year-old Greek tried and failed to pass it back, allowing Edouard to pick up possession and find the far corner for 1-1.

In stoppage time, there was one last chance for West Ham to secure their latest winner at the death. Soucek was in the mix but it was Bowen who got his head to the ball, which landed safely in Johnstone’s arms.

Kudus scored in the 13th minute but West Ham were unable to hold on to their lead

West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta competes for possession with Crystal Palace defender Joel Ward

MATCH FACTS

West Ham: Areola, Coufal, Mavropanos, Aguerd, Emerson, Alvarez, Ward-Prowse, Kudus, Soucek, Paqueta, Bowen

Crystal Palace: Johnstone, Ward, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell, Lerma, Richards, Olise, Hughes, Ayew, Edouard

Kudus attempts to keep the ball for West Ham while under pressure from Tyrick Mitchell

Experienced Premier League managers Roy Hodgson and David Moyes shared the points

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.

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