London: West Ham’s players shrugged off the unrest surrounding Dimitri Payet by beating Crystal Palace 3-0 in the English Premier League on Saturday, with Andy Carroll scoring from an eye-catching bicycle kick.

Payet this week rocked West Ham by asking to leave the club and saying he wouldn’t play against Palace. But Sofiane Feghouli’s first Premier League goal, Carroll’s stunning strike, and a stylish late third from Manuel Lanzini ensured the France midfielder was not missed.

“Payet is a great player so you are losing quality, but the team showed it is about the team and not individuals,” West Ham manager Slaven Bilic said. “This is a great example for that.”

West Ham’s fans certainly made their feelings about their former favourite abundantly clear with their chants. He may have been West Ham’s poster boy, but the club even stationed a steward in front of Payet’s image on the outer wall of the Olympic Stadium to prevent it being vandalised.

Nevertheless joint-owner David Sullivan used his column in the match magazine to insist that Payet would not be allowed to leave in the January transfer window.

As West Ham snapped a three-match losing run in all competitions and climbed nine points clear of the relegation zone, the team’s former manager, Sam Allardyce, remains winless since taking charge of Palace last month. Palace is only out of the drop zone on goal difference.

A London derby brought the return of crowd disturbances that have cast a cloud over West Ham’s first season playing in the former showpiece stadium of the 2012 London Olympics. Police had to intervene to break up a disturbance between rival fans during the match.

On the field, although Payet was absent, there was another mercurial Frenchman in action and Yohan Cabaye almost marked his 31st birthday with a goal for Palace, only to see goalkeeper Darren Randolph keep out his fierce volley.

Moments later former West Ham player James Tomkins came up with an awful miss from two yards out when he side-footed Andros Townsend’s free kick across goal and wide.

But West Ham kept up the pressure and was rewarded in the 68th when Michail Antonio rounded Palace goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey and slipped the ball across goal for Feghouli to slide in.

Ten minutes later Antonio whipped in a cross from the left and Carroll launched himself into the air to lash home a special goal with his left foot.

Lanzini ensured it was a case of “Dimitri who?” in the 86th when he collected Antonio’s pass on the halfway line, raced clear and chipped Hennessey to wrap up a much-needed win for West Ham, which went out of the FA Cup a week earlier.