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Wilfried Zaha sent the media into a frenzy when he iterated his desire to play Champions League football and speculation regarding his future at Crystal Palace surged thereafter, although the Eagles won’t be letting him go that easily.
According to The Evening Standard, the Selhurst Park outfit have set a £100m price tag on the Ivorian’s head – a sum that has already forced Spurs out of the race – and club legend Andy Johnson has a message for any clubs who think that they can get the player on the cheap.
What did he say?
Well, speaking to Football London, the former striker said:
“What Wilf has done for Palace in terms of his assists and his goals, if you compare that to any other player in the top six, you are talking about a £70m, £80m or £90m player.
“That’s what he is and just because he is at Palace doesn’t mean he is only worth £40m or £50m.”
Spot on, Johnson
Indeed, just because the twinkle-toed number 11 plays for a club who, despite their outstanding talent in various areas, are perennially battling relegation, doesn’t mean that the top sides can just swoop in and pinch him for far less than Palace’s valuation.
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Nine figures for any player should be extraordinary but isn’t in today’s market and the fact of the matter is that the 10-goal ace is worth every penny of that to Palace, who lack invention and impetus on the front foot when Zaha isn’t in the side.
The Selhurst Park outfit’s entire attacking philosophy centres around the 26-year-old and his exit would require an overhaul of personnel and style thereafter – Palace showed under Frank de Boer that a club can’t adapt in a matter of months and it could be a very long, difficult 2019/20 if Zaha leaves.
Any club trying to sign him should know that their doing so could be detrimental to Palace’s survival chances unless the south London outfit are able to reinvest heavily, hence the potentially record-breaking fee.
