Coming back from an international break, the Eagles got exactly the start they would have wanted at Villa Park as Jean-Philippe Mateta released Ismaïla Sarr for the forward to see off Ian Maatsen and coolly finish just four minutes into proceedings.
The hosts responded well to the setback but John McGinn’s strike was blocked, Morgan Rogers scuffed his attempt harmlessly wide, and Ollie Watkins sent a powerful header over the crossbar.
Leon Bailey then played a brilliant pass for Watkins, who forced Dean Henderson into a fine stop at the near post.
There was no halting the Villa frontman when he latched onto McGinn’s through ball, though, as Watkins tapped it past the onrushing Henderson and slid the ball into the gaping net.
Another break culminated in Bailey smashing his shot against the woodwork, and he was then fouled by Hughes for a penalty that saw a superb Henderson save deny Youri Tielemans.
Moments later, Palace raced forward to regain their lead with Sarr squaring the ball for Justin Devenny to score his first-ever senior goal before the break.
Watkins fronted the Villans’ search for an equaliser after the restart, although he was denied by a Maxence Lacroix recovery tackle before seeing an instinctive strike deflected wide by Travoh Chalobah.
Mateta then had a header saved at the other end but the visitors remained firm in defence with Lacroix putting in a timely tackle on Matty Cash.
The threat from Sarr continued going the other way, and he earned a free-kick that resulted in Devenny’s strike being deflected wide by the wall.
Chalobah then blocked another Watkins attempt and Ross Barkley headed over from the ensuing corner before crucially getting his head on another delivery to guide the ball into the top corner.
Sarr was wasteful from an immediate opportunity to restore the visitors’ lead before Emiliano Martínez got down brilliantly to tip Jeffrey Schlupp’s shot onto the post.
Jefferson Lerma’s late strike fizzed agonisingly past the post as Palace were ultimately forced to settle for the second draw from their last three PL matches, while also ending Villa’s four-game losing streak across all competitions.
The slight lift comes at the perfect time, with a UEFA Champions League fixture against Juventus coming up next.