Wilfried Zaha

[UNITED ACADEMY]

It will be expensive I reckon, he's Palace main man.

But I'll take him, I was never a fans of him because he dribbles too much & need to be the focal player in the team, he. But I changed my mind since this season I watched him, he has something special about him with his dribbling skills, he can offer a different dimension to our team. He's very dangerous to full backs & defenders. Strong & good balance (something he has improved), skilful, aggressive & up there with Hazard in term of dribbling successful. Players like him can also create free space to our players which good things.

 

[Loublaze]

The guy has really developed well over the years. I didn't see it to be honest, I thought his career would go into freefall after united but he's really an elegant player who indeed makes everything look easy. He's up there with Hazard among the best dribblers in the league. I don't think a move to united would suit him though to be honest

 

[simplyared]

G

The guy has really developed well over the years. I didn't see it to be honest, I thought his career would go into freefall after united but he's really an elegant player who indeed makes everything look easy. He's up there with Hazard among the best dribblers in the league. I don't think a move to united would suit him though to be honest

Good post! Exactly where he's at!

 

[Walters_19_MuFc]

The guy has really developed well over the years. I didn't see it to be honest, I thought his career would go into freefall after united but he's really an elegant player who indeed makes everything look easy. He's up there with Hazard among the best dribblers in the league. I don't think a move to united would suit him though to be honest

Why?

 

[Moriarty]

Why?

Moyes left and took his daughter with him?

Seriously, I think he'd be great on our right.

 

[Loublaze]

Why?

The uncertainty around United and his age. He's 26 and I think he's ready to step up at a club with a clear vision or a better project. One of the top 6 London clubs would be a smoother transition IMO

 

[RedTiger]

Do we have a buy back clause?

 

[Kaglish10]

Think Mane showed better movement and finishing then Zaha has shown. He's still very hit and miss in front of goal.

Mane has better control on the ball when running with the ball at full speed than Zaha. Zaha looks as agile as Mane though.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

I said last summer that I thought he was good enough for a top six team, and I think this season has solidified that.

Can he be frustrating & inconsistent? Yeah, nearly all wide men can, especially those playing in teams where the sole burden of creativity rests on their shoulders.

 

[Walters_19_MuFc]

The uncertainty around United and his age. He's 26 and I think he's ready to step up at a club with a clear vision or a better project. One of the top 6 London clubs would be a smoother transition IMO

Fair enough.

 

[Zlatattack]

I think it's unlikely we'd sign him as he wasn't happy with his previous stint here, but he'd be a great player for us.

Our team lacks creativity, he'd be great on our LW.

 

[MDFC Manager]

Moyes left and took his daughter with him?

Seriously, I think he'd be great on our right.

He doesn't even play on the wings anymore, it will be more square pegs for round holes

 

[calodo2003]

The guy has really developed well over the years. I didn't see it to be honest, I thought his career would go into freefall after united but he's really an elegant player who indeed makes everything look easy. He's up there with Hazard among the best dribblers in the league. I don't think a move to united would suit him though to be honest

He was so predictable & clunky with his dribbling when he was here / loaned back to Crystal Palace (laborious, predictable stepovers come quickly to mind) & his footballing acumen was about the same level as Rashford’s is now, he has improved on those two aspects? From a physical & speed standpoint, he would improve us substantially, just wasn’t impressed at all by his other attributes.

 

[BAMSOLA]

No point in bringing him back here especially considering the price. Samuel Chukwueze would be a better option all around.

 

[FootballHQ]

This has felt like a Spurs signing for ages, they've been linked to him many times in the past.

Maybe Chelsea might have a look aswell if they are allowed to sign players to fill the Hazard void.

Don't really see him interested in returning to Man. United tbh. If he leaves Palace he'd want CL you'd suspect.

 

[Bastian]

Do we have a buy back clause?

We have a sell-on clause. Rumoured to be anywhere from 30-50%.

Buying him won't be that expensive. And it would quite easily be worth it.

 

[Loublaze]

He was so predictable & clunky with his dribbling when he was here / loaned back to Crystal Palace (laborious, predictable stepovers come quickly to mind) & his footballing acumen was about the same level as Rashford’s is now, he has improved on those two aspects? From a physical & speed standpoint, he would improve us substantially, just wasn’t impressed at all by his other attributes.

He's one of the best dribblers in the league statistically as well. He's the second most successful dribbles per 90 after Hazard and its close. As of February this year Hazard was at 3.3 successful dribbles per game and Zaha is at 3.2, these numbers also put Zaha among the top ten dribblers in Europe across the big leagues. He beats his man almost every time. He's not just a speed demon like that championship kid the club is being linked with from Swansea

 

[FootballHQ]

He's one of the best dribblers in the league statistically as well. He's the second most successful dribbles per 90 after Hazard and its close. As of February this year Hazard was at 3.3 successful dribbles per game and Zaha is at 3.2, these numbers also put Zaha among the top ten dribblers in Europe across the big leagues. He beats his man almost every time. He's not just a speed demon like that championship kid the club is being linked with from Swansea

I'd say 18 months ago he was still taking way too many touches as he approached the box and would lose the ball carelessly. Really improved his productivity since then so is now looking more like a top quality player he promised to be in the early days.

 

[calodo2003]

He's one of the best dribblers in the league statistically as well. He's the second most successful dribbles per 90 after Hazard and its close. As of February this year Hazard was at 3.3 successful dribbles per game and Zaha is at 3.2, these numbers also put Zaha among the top ten dribblers in Europe across the big leagues. He beats his man almost every time. He's not just a speed demon like that championship kid the club is being linked with from Swansea

I’ll have to check him out on YouTube.

What would his transfer fee be, any idea?

 

[Loublaze]

I'd say 18 months ago he was still taking way too many touches as he approached the box and would lose the ball carelessly. Really improved his productivity since then so is now looking more like a top quality player he promised to be in the early days.

I’ll have to check him out on YouTube.

What would his transfer fee be, any idea?

Probably around 40-50M

 

[Okey]

Zaha and Pepe tearing down either wing would be quite the sight. Could totally transform any team's play if well coached and there's a lethal No. 9 mixed in there. One can only dream...

 

[AgentP]

We should be in for him. He'll be much better than Martial on the left wing.

 

[devilish]

If Zaha refuses to join us based on how we 'treated' him then he shouldn't move to a big club in the first place. It was evident that he wasn't ready for a big club + all the people who 'treated him badly' has now left. Id expect top players to want to return home and prove doubters wrong

 

[Cassidy]

If Zaha refuses to join us based on how we 'treated' him then he shouldn't move to a big club in the first place. It was evident that he wasn't ready for a big club + all the people who 'treated him badly' has now left. Id expect top players to want to return home and prove doubters wrong

Except it was never his home

 

[devilish]

Except it was never his home

so what? he's at the right age to come at the club and owns it. now if he prefers CL football then that's fair enough.

 

[africanspur]

I said last summer that I thought he was good enough for a top six team, and I think this season has solidified that.

Can he be frustrating & inconsistent? Yeah, nearly all wide men can, especially those playing in teams where the sole burden of creativity rests on their shoulders.

He's certainly good enough, though not as a certain starter but I feel he would be prohibitively expensive and not worth the money teams would inevitably have to pay.

 

[Cassidy]

so what? he's at the right age to come at the club and owns it

Probably why he'll end up at Spurs, a club that is a lot more stable and has a good track record for player development over the past 6 years.
At this stage in his career signing for United vs Spurs would be a big gamble and probably a mistake. Its no guarantee we will have the right pieces in place for him to be successful, infact you could say its more than likely we won't. Same reasons Sancho has reservations now also, although I think its less of an issue for Sancho as he is younger

 

[devilish]

Probably why he'll end up at Spurs, a club that is a lot more stable and has a good track record for player development over the past 6 years.
At this stage in his career signing for United vs Spurs would be a big gamble and probably a mistake. Its no guarantee we will have the right pieces in place for him to be successful, infact you could say its more than likely we won't. Same reasons Sancho has reservations now also, although I think its less of an issue for Sancho as he is younger

He's not a kid anymore though so this player development nonsense doesn't apply. If he wants CL football then that's fair enough. However if he refuse to join us because we were mean to him then he should avoid top clubs as if they were the plagues. As they say top clubs are dark and full of terror for a softie of that kind.

PS he's got far bigger chance to play first team football with us then with Spurs.

 

[Adamsk7]

Whenever I watch him play I see him being more productive and all but I just can’t help not liking the way he plays. He just seems so awkward to me (it’s effective though I guess), like his technique just looks so wrong. He could be as effective as Messi and I still wouldn’t like it!

It’s a really weird reason not to like a player but there you go!

 

[Cassidy]

He's not a kid anymore though so this player development nonsense doesn't apply. If he wants CL football then that's fair enough. However if he refuse to join us because we were mean to him then he should avoid top clubs as if they were the plagues. As they say top clubs are dark and full of terror for a softie of that kind.

You miss interpret what I mean by player development.

Right now he is primed to elevate himself to a new level at a bigger club. Over the past 6 years we have seen top players come to United and not reach that next level for various reasons. One being that the club hasn't provided them with the platform (a squad manager and setup to push for major trophies) we don't look like getting back there in the next season or 2. In your prime age of 26 this would be the wrong place to sign.

He should and likely will refuse to join us because we are not a well run club, if we were I don't think the past would be an issue.

 

[Adisa]

Whenever I watch him play I see him being more productive and all but I just can’t help not liking the way he plays. He just seems so awkward to me (it’s effective though I guess), like his technique just looks so wrong. He could be as effective as Messi and I still wouldn’t like it!

It’s a really weird reason not to like a player but there you go!

He looks like he's doing it by mistake. Of courses it isn't but he doesn't look in control of the ball most of the time.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Probably why he'll end up at Spurs, a club that is a lot more stable and has a good track record for player development over the past 6 years.
At this stage in his career signing for United vs Spurs would be a big gamble and probably a mistake. Its no guarantee we will have the right pieces in place for him to be successful, infact you could say its more than likely we won't. Same reasons Sancho has reservations now also, although I think its less of an issue for Sancho as he is younger

Nah, no chance IMO. Doesn't fit our profile at all.

He would be very expensive, is already in his prime and despite being a fantastic player there are still question marks over his mentality. I've always been a big fan but never thought we would ever get him, it's just not a Spurs signing at all.

 

[MagicKarpet]

He's not a kid anymore though so this player development nonsense doesn't apply. If he wants CL football then that's fair enough. However if he refuse to join us because we were mean to him then he should avoid top clubs as if they were the plagues. As they say top clubs are dark and full of terror for a softie of that kind.

PS he's got far bigger chance to play first team football with us then with Spurs.

You don't have to be a kid to develop as a player, plenty of examples of players improving later on in their career.

That said he's too expensive for Spurs anyway, £80m should get you a nailed on starter but there's no garantee he will start in this team, we were after him a few years ago but I suspect that's why we bought in Lucas so for me the ship has well and truly sailed.

 

[LawCharltonBest]

He’s leaving for CL football, so as usual nothing to do with Man United.

This one interests me a lot though. I think he’s seriously underrated and will be excellent at one of the big 4.

 

[Champagne Football]

Not sure Spurs would pay £70 million for him when they can probably get Grealish for £30 million.

Probably Arsenal bound.

If we can't land Pepe then we should send the roses and chocolates to Zaha to beg for forgiveness.
In fairness he was treated shockingly by a managerial charlatan, who decided he could treat Zaha badly because Nani and Januzaj were the future. Imagine Mason Greenwood signing for Palace and on his first day being told he's 7th choice striker and that he has basically no future at Palace.

 

[FootyGirl88]

Can Arsenal afford him? Money is tight over there, remember they could only loan players in Jan.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Not sure Spurs would pay £70 million for him when they can probably get Grealish for £30 million.

Probably Arsenal bound.

If we can't land Pepe then we should send the roses and chocolates to Zaha to beg for forgiveness.
In fairness he was treated shockingly by a managerial charlatan, who decided he could treat Zaha badly because Nani and Januzaj were the future. Imagine Mason Greenwood signing for Palace and on his first day being told he's 7th choice striker and that he has basically no future at Palace.

They play completely different positions. We could very conceivably sign both.

Although as @MagicKarpet says, with Lucas having signed and established himself now I really don't think a player like Zaha is our priority, certainly not someone we will view as worth blowing 80m+ on.

 

[Melville Red]

Why?

Because Wilfred said he wants to move to play in The CL. Can you guess now why it wouldn’t suit him

 

[MagicKarpet]

Can Arsenal afford him? Money is tight over there, remember they could only loan players in Jan.

Possibly but they wouldn't be able to sign anyone else if they spend it

Plus I'm sure that Emery is going for 2 up front next season so I'm not sure where Zaha fits in that?

 

[FootyGirl88]

Possibly but they wouldn't be able to sign anyone else if they spend it

Plus I'm sure that Emery is going for 2 up front next season so I'm not sure where Zaha fits in that?

Exactly - they don't need anymore attacking players.

They need a whole new backline and a few midfielders.