Southampton have just one goal remaining this season, and that is to ensure they do not go down as the Premier League's worst ever side.

That is the view of Ivan Juric, whose team host Crystal Palace on Wednesday.

Southampton sit bottom of the pile and are condemned to relegation, with Juric having already given up hope of staying up.

Indeed, Juric says Southampton's main aim now is to surpass the competition's record-low points tally of 11, set by Derby County in the 2007-08 season.

"The team has to be competing and try to do our best. We have to be really motivated," said Juric, whose Southampton side host FA Cup semi-finalists Crystal Palace on Wednesday.

"I don't want it to be that we are the worst team in the history of the Premier League.

"If we can be not the last on the table, we have to do our best, so in this moment, this is our goal. I think we are in good shape, we can do it and we will try to win the match."

Southampton have nine points from 29 games, meaning they need three more to surpass Derby's tally from 17 years ago.

They are averaging 0.31 points per game, just slightly higher than Derby's 0.28 per match in 2007-08.

Palace, who progressed to the FA Cup semi-finals with a 3-0 win over Fulham last weekend, are a daunting next opponent.

Oliver Glasner's team are unbeaten in their last nine away league games (W6 D3), just one short of their longest ever unbeaten run on the road in their league history of 10 matches, achieved four times previously (most recently April 1979 in the second tier).

The Eagles have also won their last four Premier League away games; only in February 2004 in the second tier have they ever won five away league fixtures in a row.

"It's something I never did before," said Glasner.

"But it's also [because of] the belief of the players that we can win everywhere. What I liked in the Fulham game is we didn't get nervous after really struggling at the beginning. We relied on our quality, on our system, on what we were planning."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Southampton - Paul Onuachu

Onuachu netted for Southampton in their loss to Wolves last time out in the league.

Along with Joe Aribo, the striker is Southampton’s joint-highest Premier League goalscorer in 2024-25 (three goals each).

Only four sides in the competition’s history have had their top scorer from their opening 30 games of a campaign be on three goals or fewer: Sunderland in 2005-06, Derby in 2007-08, Hull in 2013-14, and Huddersfield in 2018-19.

Crystal Palace - Ismaila Sarr

Sarr has scored three goals in Palace's last two Premier League games, just one fewer than he had netted in his previous 36 appearances in the competition beforehand (four).

The Senegalese forward is looking to score in three successive appearances in one of Europe's big-five leagues for only the second time, having only previously done so in March 2018 for Rennes.

MATCH PREDICTION: CRYSTAL PALACE WIN

According to Opta's supercomputer, Southampton have a 95% chance of going down, and the same model is making Palace favourites for this game.

Juric has lost all six of his Premier League home games as Southampton boss, one of only three managers to lose each of their first 6+ home matches in the competition, along with Mick McCarthy and Vincent Kompany, who both lost their first seven.

Palace have kept a clean sheet in each of their last five Premier League away games, winning the last four of those. In English top-flight history, the only sides to win 5+ successive away matches without conceding are Newcastle United, Chelsea twice, Manchester United and Manchester City.

Southampton are facing an average of 17.9 shots per game in the Premier League this season, the most by a side in a campaign in the competition since Cardiff City in 2013-14 (18.2). Indeed, the Saints average xGA per game of 2.40 is the highest on record (from 2012-13) in a Premier League season.

Palace have won their last four Premier League games against Southampton, as many as they had in their first 25 against them in the competition beforehand (D7 L14).

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Southampton - 20.2%

Palace - 56.3%

Draw - 23.6%