Bournemouth boosted their hopes of qualifying for Europe for the first time with a victory against a poor Crystal Palace.
The win, which extended a club record unbeaten run in the Premier League to 15 games, helped the Cherries climb to sixth in the table with 52 points – one clear of Brentford and two better than Brighton with three matches remaining.
Palace lacked any cohesion at Vitality Stadium, with a much-changed line-up from Thursday’s 3-1 win against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Conference League semi-final.
Finding themselves 15th in the league, they will turn their full attention to that competition.
Jefferson Lerma, who spent five seasons as a Bournemouth player before joining Palace, scored an early own goal.
Evanilson’s header from Alex Scott’s corner was going wide until midfielder Lerma diverted his clearance back towards goal, with goalkeeper Dean Henderson unable to claw the ball away.
Henderson was at fault for Bournemouth’s second as he failed to hold on to a long throw-in and then caught Marcos Senesi to give away a soft penalty.
Eli Junior Kroupi sent Henderson the wrong way from the spot for his 12th goal of the season.
Palace manager Oliver Glasner responded by bringing on Ismaila Sarr, Adam Wharton and Tyrick Mitchell at half-time, but Bournemouth continued to have the better opportunities.
Brazilian teenager Rayan, who spurned two chances early in the second half, sealed a comfortable victory by latching on to a throughball from David Brooks and firing across Henderson and into the bottom corner.
Bournemouth analysis: Cherries move closer to Europe
This contest pitted two managers who will leave this summer against each other, and Andoni Iraola emerged as the clear winner.
The win, watched by incoming boss Marco Rose, helped Bournemouth leapfrog Brighton and Brentford.
A sixth-placed finish would secure a place in the Champions League if Aston Villa win the Europa League and finish fifth in the Premier League.
Only one team in Premier League history have managed a 15-game unbeaten run and finished outside the top six – Chelsea, who were 10th in 2015-16.
European qualification would be a perfect parting gift for Iraola, but Bournemouth must extend their remarkable run against fellow European contenders Fulham, title-chasing Manchester City and Nottingham Forest in their final three games.
Palace analysis: A day to forget
Palace’s team news hinted that their priority had shifted to the Conference League and, if confirmation was necessary, it came in the manner of their performance.
They are tantalisingly close to a first major European final after their commanding win against Shakhtar.
With one eye on Thursday’s second leg, Glasner made five changes to his side as Wharton, top scorer Sarr and Jean-Philippe Mateta dropped to the bench.
A disjointed Palace failed to register a shot in the first half, compared to Bournemouth’s 10.
The second half was an improvement after Glasner threw on the influential trio, with Sarr’s 89th-minute effort off a post the closest Palace came to scoring.
But even at 3-0 down, their supporters were undeterred and sang “We’re going to Leipzig”, signalling a potential Conference League final against Rayo Vallecano or Strasbourg at Red Bull Arena on 27 May.
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