Academy player has transformed club into top-flight regulars: his departure to Galatasaray will leave an enormous voidIt was the farewell letter Crystal Palace supporters hoped they would never have to read. Wilfried Zaha’s emotional message posted on Instagram just after 10pm on Sunday finally signalled the end of a journey that began when he joined Palace’s youth team more than 20 years ago.“I’ve been wearing the Palace shirt since I was eight years old, it’s literally been my second skin and I always gave everything when I wore it,” Zaha wrote. “I grew up two roads away from the bright lights and loud crowds of Selhurst Park, having no idea that I would be at the centre of it all...
The ‘freedom’ at the foot of the Premier League and also in the forward’s own role help to ensure Chelsea never came close to deciphering Roy Hodgson’s planTimid, listless and toothless in their first seven matches; vibrant, inspired and potent against the Premier League champions. The contrast was so ridiculous, the logic so dubious, that the only reasonable explanation for Crystal Palace’s stunning 2-1 victory over Chelsea at a delirious Selhurst Park was the one offered up by Wilfried Zaha. “After you’ve lost every game you have nothing to be scared of really,” he said. “You are not scared of anything. You just play with freedom.”Before anyone assumes otherwise, Zaha was not recommending a morale-sapping losing streak as the perfect...
It is ridiculous to cast split loyalties as an issue of blame, an absence of old English backbone; to understand rather than bully is the only viable futureParallax error is the kind of thing one learns about in year five physics. It describes the way the same object can appear to have different qualities observed from different angles – like a measuring gauge, for example, or Arsenal’s talented teenage centre-forward Eddie Nketiah.“Arsenal wonderkid Eddie Nketiah nets hat-trick for England Under‑18s,” was the headline in one English newspaper after Nketiah’s fine performance against Qatar on Tuesday night. “England-born Ghanaian Eddie Nketiah scores on England debut,” was an alternative view from Ghanaweb.com after Nketiah had scored on his debut against Saudi Arabia...
Liverpool, Manchester United, Sunderland, Leicester and others may be hit by loss of players to tournament as clubs such as Chelsea, Manchester City capitaliseNow is the time for top clubs to prove that to be forewarned really is to be forearmed. Everyone knew that the Africa Cup of Nations was on the agenda for early 2017 and now, with 23 Premier League players among those heading off to Gabon to compete for their countries in what their employers view as the world’s worst-timed international tournament, rich clubs must show they are resourceful enough to cope. Otherwise they will pay a heavy price. Related: Liverpool’s matchwinner Sadio Mané will head to Gabon with a heavy heart Related: Wilfried Zaha accepts Ivory...