Crystal Palace 2-1 Leicester City: Big win for hosts on Roy Hodgson return but more 'pain' for Foxes
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Crystal Palace 2-1 Leicester City: Roy Hodgson hails 'fantastic' win on return
Roy Hodgson's return to the Selhurst Park dugout began in fine fashion as Crystal Palace moved further away from the relegation zone with a late victory over Leicester City.
For the Foxes, though, it was another afternoon of frustration.
Leicester were denied the opportunity to clamber out of the bottom three after Palace's last-minute winner and are now a point adrift of safety.
Palace were joined by Bournemouth, who beat Fulham, in the relegation-threatened teams who picked up vital wins this weekend.
Hodgson called his side's performance "fantastic", while counterpart Rodgers described the result as "painful".
Only seven points separate Palace, who are 12th with 30, and bottom side Southampton, who have 23.
Both Leicester and Palace have stern tests in their final 10 fixtures as they look to avoid playing Championship football next season.
Elation for Palace after 'fantastic' win
Crystal Palace inflicted late heartbreak on Leicester City on Roy Hodgson's return to the Premier League
Hodgson took the reins as Palace manager during the international break after Patrick Vieira was sacked following a 12-game unbeaten run.
Things already look on the up after his first game in charge.
Palace were dominant and recorded 20 shots by half-time, the most of any team in a Premier League fixture since 2015.
Hodgson said: "I must say that in the four years I was lucky enough to work here before I never saw that quality of performance the team gave in the first half."
Their early dominance failed to result in a goal, but they came from behind after Leicester opened the scoring before Jean-Philippe Mateta scored the winner in the last minute of stoppage time.
Even after losing captain and attacking threat Wilfried Zaha to a groin injury before the break, Palace did not let up in their search for the win.
"That was a fantastic way to win a game and I'm not just talking about the fact it was a last-minute goal," said Hodgson.
"The way the team played throughout the 94 minutes was worthy of a lot of credit. The scoreline certainly doesn't flatter us."
'Sore' loss for Leicester
While it was ecstasy for Palace, the feeling for Leicester at the final whistle was one of frustration.
The Foxes missed a chance to gain the upper hand in the relegation battle and have now lost 22 points from winning positions in the league this season, the most of any team.
"It is so tight," Rodgers told BBC Match of the Day when asked about the relegation battle.
"Now we've got to use the pain of today and look to our next game. It's a sore one, it's a painful one, especially when you don't feel you deserved that at all."
April will be a critical month for the Foxes with fixtures against fellow strugglers Leeds, Wolves, Aston Villa and Bournemouth, plus tough tests against Manchester City and Aston Villa.
Some sections of the Leicester support have called for manager Rodgers to go, with fans at Selhurst Park chanting for him to be sacked.
Without a win in their past six games, Leicester's fortunes are in dire need of turning around.
Former England striker Alan Shearer told Match of the Day: "It will be a huge worry if you are a Leicester fan. They have not kept a clean sheet in the league since the World Cup. Where is the spark coming from? I don't know but it doesn't look a happy camp to me."
Crystal Palace 2-1 Leicester City - Defeat was 'painful' says Brendan Rodgers
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