Julen Lopetegui had said it would take time for West Ham’s eight summer signings to settle in east London.

When the team news broke at Selhurst Park there was undoubtedly some disappointment in the away end, with only Max Kilman and Guido Rodriguez – the two new arrivals who had caused the opening defeat to Aston Villa – making the starting line-up.

But towards the end of the game, they might have appreciated Lopetegui’s slow and steady approach to settling them in. Second-half substitutions for Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Niclas Fullkrug breathed life into what had been a fairly dull London derby, with the Hammers yet to register a shot on target before the pair came off the bench. Within nine minutes of their introductions, Tomas Soucek and Jarrod Bowen had put them 2-0 up and secured Lopetegui’s first Premier League win since taking charge.

It was two new boys who created the goals for two long-serving West Ham players. Wan-Bissaka’s dribbling run down the right led to Soucek’s sloppy opener before Kilman set up Bowen for the second five minutes later. Fullkrug may not have had a direct hand in either goal, but his presence seemed to draw Palace defenders out of position, freeing Bowen up from the south London side to open his account for the season.

After a disappointing start to his reign, the pieces of the puzzle are starting to fall into place for Lopetegui.

Tomas Soucek opened the scoring for West Ham with a well-placed goal in the second half

Captain Jarrod Bowen doubled West Ham’s lead with a powerful left-footed shot

Julen Lopetegui could celebrate his first victory since taking charge of West Ham

For Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner, there appear to be too many missing pieces. Michael Olise and Joachim Anderson have already left the club, while Jordan Ayew is also said to be on his way to Leicester. The future of starting and captain Marc Guehi remains uncertain due to interest from Newcastle.

As in their defeat at Brentford last week, Palace had the better chances in the first half but failed to capitalise. Their wastefulness in front of goal, combined with excellent defending from Kilman, meant that West Ham kept their first clean sheet in 20 Premier League games.

In a frantic opening period, Soucek came close to putting West Ham ahead when he was given a free header from a Bowen corner, but his shot went just wide.

Eberechi Eze might have put Palace ahead at the other end when he was played in by Adam Wharton, but the striker’s shot was too close to Alphonse Areola, who stuck out a leg to clear the ball. Odsonne Edouard was the next Palace player to waste, dragging an effort wide of the far post.

Eze almost curled in a spectacular goal just before half-time, but his fine shot hit the crossbar before West Ham cleared the ball.

As the hour ticked by, both managers turned to their benches. Lopetegui introduced Fullkrug and Wan-Bissaka, who replaced Michail Antonio and Vladimir Coufal, while Glasner brought on Daichi Kamada for Jefferson Lerma.

It was Lopetegui’s substitution that paid off. Wan-Bissaka drove down the right flank and crossed into the middle. The ball bounced around before falling to Soucek, who fired past Dean Henderson. The away fans celebrated so wildly that one of the advertising hoardings fell down, with a Palace ball boy caught up in the melee. Bowen and Soucek were quick to help the shocked youngster out of the fray before the ground staff helped him off the pitch.

Ground staff attempted to repair the broken board, but minutes later the away end was shaking again as West Ham doubled their lead.

It was a move that began from the back, with Kilman bringing the ball forward before picking out Bowen in space. The Hammers captain outpaced the Palace defence before firing an unstoppable shot into the bottom right corner, past a helpless Dean Henderson.

The home side could have had another goal when Tyrick Mitchell picked out Ismaila Sarr in the penalty area, but his shot hit the post and went wide.