Southampton have produced a grandstand finish in their Premier League clash with Crystal Palace, downing the Eagles 3-1 courtesy of two late goals.
The scoreline was tied at 1-1 until the 84th minute, when Maya Yoshida and James Ward-Prowse struck in quick succession to secure maximum points for the Saints.
Claude Puel's side were quick off the starting blocks and they gave their opponents an early scare when Shane Long blazed a shot just wide of the post in the opening minute.
The hosts remained on the front foot and looked odds on to break the deadlock minutes later when Ward-Prowse sent Long clean through on goal, only for the Irishman to scuff his effort wide.
Palace looked dangerous from set pieces and they fired a warning shot when Luka Milivojevic curled a free kick over the wall and clipped the outside of the post in the 13th minute, with a helpless Fraser Forster looking on.
Almost 20 minutes after nicking the woodwork, Palace hit Southampton on the break to take the lead, Christian Benteke turning Andros Townsend's ball home from close range to cap off a neat team move which also involved Wilfried Zaha and Jason Puncheon.
However, Southampton continued to dominate possession and that paid off on the stroke of half time when a Ward-Prowse cross from wide on the right was bundled into the bottom corner by Nathan Redmond.
The second half was a scrappy affair in which neither side looked capable of mustering a winner until Yoshida pounced on Jack Stephens's hoisted cross in the box to bundle the ball over the line and make it 2-1.
Palace were reeling after conceding late, but things got even worse for them as Ward-Prowse added a third one minute later, exchanging passes with Cedric Soares before shooting into the bottom corner to bury the Eagles.
The result brings Palace's run of four straight victories to an abrupt halt and puts Sam Allardyce's side back in relegation trouble, now sitting just three points above the dropzone.
Mark Langshaw
