April 15 2021

Wilfried Zaha

It seems that Wilfried Zaha is constantly on the receiving end of transfer speculation, but he never ends up actually going anywhere, writes Peter Fitzsimmons.

Zaha has spent nearly all his career contracted to the London club, aside from a brief and unsuccessful spell at Manchester United between 2013 and 2015 (which included a loan at Cardiff).

As one of the most talented players in the Palace's history, Zaha may feel as though he deserves a move to a top-six club. With the player edging closer to his 30th birthday, the Eagles may feel it is time to cash in before he drops in value.

The player Wants Champions League football

On paper, it seems as though Zaha is almost a one-club man, a loyal Palace player since the early days of his footballing journey. Along with coming up through the academy, the Ivorian has made more than 330 appearances for the Eagles. However, these figures don’t tell the full story about a player who regularly tries to push for a transfer away from the club.

It is no secret that Zaha believes he deserves to compete in the world’s top competitions such as the Champions League. He will be looking enviously at teams like Manchester City and Liverpool, who are usually heading the Champions League betting no matter who they are facing. Pep Guardiola’s men, in particular, have been favoured to go all the way this season and can be backed at 6/4 to win at the time of writing.

Many would agree that Zaha’s talent would slot in perfectly at clubs like these. And the fact that he would be surrounded by other world-class players would most likely get the best out of him. For this reason, there is always speculation in the betting markets during the transfer windows that a bigger club will swoop in for the 28-year-old.

Zaha money could be used on two new signings

According to Transfermarkt, Zaha is worth around £45million. However, he is under contract at Palace until 2023, meaning that anyone who wants to sign him is likely to have to pay over his valuation.

Therefore, Palace would most likely be looking at upwards of £50million for Zaha’s sale. This would be a major windfall for the club, and the money could be used on at least two up-and-coming players to improve the squad.

There is no doubt that Zaha is one of the key players for Palace, and Roy Hodgson’s side is much more dangerous when the Ivory Coast international is on the pitch. But, despite his goal contributions, Palace continue to languish in the bottom half of the table. Perhaps if they could spend the money on some younger rising stars, they could start challenging in the upper echelons of the league.

Palace are running out of time to cash in on Zaha, and the player is leaving it late if he wants to play in the Champions League. It may be of interest to both parties if the forward is sold in the summer. That money could be used to start a rebuilding project at Palace and push up the table.