WILFRIED ZAHA fears being priced out of the market by Crystal Palace for a second year running.
The 27-year-old winger has told the club he wants to leave this summer after a disappointing campaign.
Wilfred Zaha fears being priced out of the market by Crystal Palace for a second year runningCredit: Rex Features
Zaha was fuming when he was hit with an astonishing £100m price tag by Palace owner Steve Parish last summerCredit: PA:Press Association
And Eagles manager Roy Hodgson is ready to listen to offers for the exciting Ivory Coast international.
But Palace are expected to demand as much as £70MILLION for their star player and Zaha’s representatives worry that will scupper hopes of a move.
Zaha was fuming when he was hit with an astonishing £100m price tag by Palace owner Steve Parish last summer.
And though his value has plummeted as a result of his indifferent form and the financial consequences of coronavirus, Palace are still in no mood to let him go on the cheap.
The biggest stumbling block for any deal is the sell-on clause which Palace agreed with Manchester United when they brought the player back to Selhurst Park in 2015.
United paid £10m to make Zaha the last signing of Alex Ferguson’s reign but he only managed seven months at Old Trafford before being resold to Palace for £6m.
But it is understood that Palace promised United as much as 25 per cent of any future sale.
Manchester United stand to profit 25 per cent of any future Zaha sale
And it is that sell-on clause which makes it almost impossible for Palace to slash their asking price.
Arsenal’s £40m bid was rejected out of hand last summer after former boss Unai Emery made Zaha his No1 Emirates target.
But the Gunners are no longer in the market after overruling Emery’s wishes to pay a club-record £72m for Nicolas Pepe.
Big-spending Everton also had a £52m bid turned down before returning with an improved £70m offer plus midfielder James McCarthy in part exchange on the eve of the transfer deadline.
Yet that was also rejected by Palace because there was no time to sign a replacement, leading to disappointed Zaha parting company with his agent.
Everton director of football Marcel Brands remains a big admirer of Zaha, although it is not known if new boss Carlo Ancelotti is quite so keen.
But the Merseysiders will be working on a restricted budget this summer after blowing more than £200m on failed signings in recent years.
Palace are expected to demand as much as £70m for their star player
One possible solution is for Everton to offer Alex Iwobi and Cenk Tosun plus a fee of around £20m for Zaha.
Palace had agreed a £17m fee to sign Turkish international Tosun when he joined them on loan in January.
But the striker suffered a serious cruciate injury the following month and the loan agreement was cancelled.
Iwobi cost Everton £35m when they signed him from Arsenal last summer, the day after their improved bid for Zaha was rejected.
But the Nigerian international winger has failed to shine at Goodison and could be allowed to leave after just one season.
Tottenham are also thought to be interested in Zaha but are not likely to become involved in a bidding war for a player who scored just FOUR goals all season.
Hodgson was critical of Zaha’s efforts since Palace emerged out of lockdown last month and said: “It’s obviously affected him because his form in the last few weeks has been quite poor considering what he is capable of doing.
“It’s a dilemma for him and for the club if he is set on leaving.
“We still like him very much but we can’t make him like us and it would be sad if he feels he doesn’t want to be with us any more.”
Zaha became the highest-paid player in Palace history two years ago when he signed a £130,000-a-week deal which runs to 2023.
Glenn Murray says now is the time for Wilfried Zaha to leave Crystal Palace
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
