Tomas Soucek and Jarrod Bowen netted within five minutes of each other in the second half, sealing a 2-0 triumph for West Ham over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
The visitors, who had controlled much of the game, finally broke through in the 67th minute when Soucek scored, followed shortly by Bowen, who doubled the lead on a wet afternoon in South London.
Eberechi Eze had nearly shifted the momentum in favor of Palace before halftime with a powerful strike that rattled the crossbar.
However, despite this close call, the hosts struggled to capitalize on their opportunities.
Palace substitute Ismaila Sarr also came close to reducing the deficit, but like his teammate, his effort was denied by the woodwork, leaving the hosts empty-handed in what was Sarr’s first appearance at Selhurst Park.
Oliver Glasner’s Palace side had been depleted in the 24 hours leading up to the match, with the departures of Joachim Andersen to Fulham and Jordan Ayew to Leicester.
In Andersen’s absence, Chadi Riad was given his Premier League debut, while Julen Lopetegui named an unchanged lineup following the Hammers’ season-opening defeat to Aston Villa.
West Ham started on the front foot, with early headers from Soucek and Michail Antonio narrowly missing the target. Meanwhile, Eze’s dangerous effort took a deflection off Vladimir Coufal, landing on the roof of West Ham’s net.
Palace began to assert themselves as the game progressed, but their efforts were repeatedly thwarted, with Alphonse Areola making a crucial save to deny Eze, and Odsonne Edouard missing a golden opportunity to put the hosts ahead.
As the rain finally ceased, the game’s pace remained high, though clear scoring chances were rare.
Eze’s shot off the crossbar in the 42nd minute was the closest either side came to finding the back of the net before the break.
The second half saw Edouard come close again, but his shot was comfortably saved by Areola.
Despite a sustained period of pressure from Palace, it was West Ham who made the breakthrough after a series of substitutions in the 63rd minute.
Wan-Bissaka, introduced by Lopetegui, played a key role in the lead-up to Soucek’s goal, which was met with exuberant celebrations from the visiting fans that resulted in a section of the hoarding collapsing under the weight of the supporters.
Five minutes later, Bowen secured West Ham’s victory with a precise left-footed strike after being set up by Max Kilman. Sarr, who had just been introduced, failed to make the impact he desired, with his close-range attempt hitting the post and denying Palace a lifeline.
In another match, Southampton’s first home game since returning to the Premier League ended in a disappointing 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest.
Morgan Gibbs-White scored the only goal of the match 20 minutes from time, capitalizing on a poorly defended corner to give Forest their first win of the season and leave the Saints still searching for their first points.
Russell Martin’s side struggled to generate any meaningful offense, managing just one shot on target, and their lack of urgency was met with frustration by the home fans, who booed the team off the pitch at full-time.
The atmosphere at St Mary’s, initially buoyant, turned sour as Forest took control of the game.
The first half was largely uneventful, with the closest call coming when Southampton’s Taylor Harwood-Bellis almost scored an own goal with a misplaced back pass, forcing goalkeeper Alex McCarthy to scramble to keep the ball out.
Forest then upped the pressure, with Ibrahim Sangare testing McCarthy from distance and Nikola Milenkovic going close with a header from a corner.
Despite Southampton’s brief improvement after the interval, it was Forest who broke the deadlock.
A corner from Callum Hudson-Odoi found Gibbs-White at the back post, and after his initial header was cleared off the line, he made no mistake with his second attempt, driving the ball home to secure the win for his team.
Forest continued to look the more likely to score as the match wore on, with McCarthy making a vital save to deny Hudson-Odoi and keep Southampton in the game.
However, the Saints were unable to mount a comeback, leaving them to reflect on a disappointing performance as Forest secured all three points.
