Ismaila Sarr scored twice on his birthday as Crystal Palace made it back-to-back Premier League wins with an emphatic 4-1 triumph over Aston Villa.

Jean-Philippe Mateta and Eddie Nketiah were also on target for the Eagles, who recorded only their third top-flight victory at Selhurst Park this season.

Sarr marked the occasion of his 27th birthday by breaking the deadlock, but Morgan Rogers, who had a goal overturned in the first half following a VAR review, restored parity in the 52nd minute.

Palace were not to be denied though, as Mateta’s thunderous effort gave them the lead again, before Sarr's exquisite volley made matters more comfortable.

Nketiah’s first league goal for Palace added further gloss to a brilliant win late on.

Oliver Glasner’s team stay 12th, but are just one point behind Brentford and six off 10th-placed Villa, who have played one more match.

How the match unfolded

Palace drew first blood in the 29th minute. Emiliano Martinez could only parry Chris Richards' header from an Adam Wharton cross straight to Sarr, who made no mistake from close range.

Sarr and Mateta squandered decent opportunities to double Palace’s lead, before Villa thought they had equalised. Rogers tucked the ball in from Watkins’ clever cutback, only for the goal to be disallowed following a VAR review, which ruled the creator had strayed marginally offside.

Nevertheless, the same combination drew the visitors level in the 52nd minute. Watkins flicked on a long kick from substitute goalkeeper Robin Olsen – on at half-time for Martinez – and Rogers latched onto it. He still had plenty to do, but having taken a fine first touch with his head, the youngster drilled in with an improvised finish on the turn.

Villa were level for just seven minutes, though. Wharton and Eberechi Eze combined to tee up Mateta, who confidently fired home.

Sarr scored his second goal with a superbly steered volley from Daniel Munoz’s centre in the 71st minute, and Nketiah added his name to the scoresheet in stoppage time when he turned in Tyrick Mitchell’s low cross.

Wonderful Wharton makes his case to Tuchel

Given their impressive form on the road, the target for Palace was to transfer it to Selhurst Park, and they certainly did that in this match.

England head coach Thomas Tuchel watched from the stands, and he will have been very impressed by the performance of the returning Wharton.

Making his first league start since October after three successive substitute appearances, the 21-year-old produced an all-action display in the middle of the park, and also had an involvement in all three goals.

Two of them were finished excellently by Sarr, who made his mark on his special day. His first goal was a case of being in the right place at the right time, but his second was a cutely guided effort.

Mateta, who scored a hat-trick when Palace won the corresponding fixture last season 5-0, was also the scourge of Villa once more, as he got the crucial goal that propelled the Eagles back into the lead.

Palace will head into Saturday’s FA Cup clash with Millwall full of confidence, before their next two Premier League fixtures come against sides in the bottom three, Ipswich Town and Southampton. After a shaky start to the campaign, a top-half finish could be on the cards for the Eagles.

Villa’s away woes roll on

Buoyed by their comeback win over Chelsea, Villa started brightly at Selhurst Park, with Youri Tielemans heading wide and Jacob Ramsey having a smart finish ruled out for offside, before Sarr put them behind.

Unai Emery’s side would not have been panicking at that point, though, with no team collecting more points from losing positions in the Premier League this season ahead of this matchweek.

They responded well with Rogers, who was thwarted in the first half, not to be denied after the break.

His link-up play with Watkins will also have caught the eye of the onlooking Tuchel, who takes charge of England for the first time next month.

But the visitors always looked vulnerable to Palace’s pace and power at the other end of the field, and so it proved.

Villa could have moved into fifth place with a win, but instead they are now 10th, having missed a great chance to apply more pressure on their rivals for European qualification. They have now lost seven of their last nine away league matches, winning only twice on the road since the start of September.

However, Emery's men must quickly dust themselves down. Cardiff City await them in the FA Cup fifth round on Friday, before they face Club Brugge in the Champions League.

Club reports

Crystal Palace report | Aston Villa report

Match officials

Referee: Sam Barrott. Assistants: Tim Wood, Wade Smith. Fourth official: Tim Robinson. VAR: Jarred Gillett. Assistant VAR: Mark Scholes.