SAINTS were unable to hold onto an early lead at Crystal Palace as the hosts responded with goals in both halves to win 2-1 at Selhurst Park.

The two teams were level at half-time after Tyler Dibling's second senior strike for Saints was nullified by a Trevoh Chalobah header from a corner kick.

Aaron Ramsdale believed he was pushed to the ground but even in this era of goalkeeper protection, he did not get the desired decision.

Eberechi Eze half-volleyed the hosts ahead shortly into the second period and after starting well, Ivan Juric's side never looked like they would recover.

It leaves Saints with six points at the halfway mark of the Premier League - West Brom had 10 when they survived with the fewest at this stage in 2004/05.

Juric made three changes from the first Saints team he named four days ago - who were beaten 1-0 by West Ham on Boxing Day - at Selhurst Park.

James Bree, Joe Aribo and Tyler Dibling all came back into the side, while the front two of Adam Armstrong and Paul Onuachu kept their place.

Juric revealed he is a fan of Palace manager Oliver Glasner - who was missing his captain, Marc Guehi, through suspension - during the build-up to the match.

Both teams operated with three central defenders but encouraged a high-intensity game. The opening goal only took 14 minutes to produce.

Dibling started and finished a move that swept from right to left with pace, as Kyle Walker-Peters' low ball found Dibling via Adam Armstrong's shot.

His opener had come from well inside the six-yard box but Jefferson Lerma threatened to level from the edge of the box after a clever one-two.

Chalobah did head in a controversial leveller after half an hour, beating Taylor Harwood-Bellis to a corner from which Ramsdale felt he was fouled.

Jean-Phillipe Mateta leaned out with his left arm and delivered a strong and sustained push on Ramsdale but VAR - surprisingly - cleared it as no foul.

In a few minutes, Ramsdale denied Ismaila Sarr one-on-one and an acrobatic Lerma strike and Walker-Peters blocked a Daniel Munoz certain goal on the line.

Juric made a change five minutes into the second half, introducing Lesley Ugochukwu for Joe Aribo, but the second goal for Palace came shortly after.

Eze latched onto the ball and struck through a crowd from the edge of the area after Mateus Fernandes failed to deal with a hooked cross from Munoz.

Fernandes then picked up a fifth yellow card to rule him out of Southampton's next match, while Mateta escaped punishment for shoulder barging Jan Bednarek.

But it was a comfortable finish for Palace, even in five minutes added, as they condemned Saints to a 17th successive winless top-flight match on the road.

Crystal Palace: Henderson; Munoz, Richards, Chalobah, Lacroix, Mitchell; Lerma, Hughes (Doucoure, 86); Sarr (Nketiah, 90), Eze (Kamada, 86), Mateta.

Unused subs: Turner, Riad, Clyne, Kporha, Devenny, Schlupp.

Booked: Hughes.

Saints: Ramsdale; Bree, Harwood-Bellis, Bednarek, Wood, Walker-Peters (Manning, 86); Aribo (Ugochukwu, h-t), Fernandes, Dibling (Lallana, 86); Armstrong (Kamaldeen, 64), Onuachu (Archer, 64).

Unused subs: McCarthy, Sugawara, Bella-Kotchap, Taylor.

Booked: Fernandes, Harwood-Bellis, Bednarek

Referee: Michael Salisbury.

VAR: Graham Scott.