Wilfried Zaha: Manchester United set to complete £15m deal

By Ben SmithBBC Sport

Last updated on .From the section Footballcomments727

Wilfried Zaha

Wilfried Zaha will undergo a medical with Manchester United in the next 48 hours before completing a £15m move from Crystal Palace.

The 20-year-old forward has agreed a five-and-a-half year deal but will be loaned back to Palace until the summer.

United will pay £10m up front, with the fee potentially rising to £15m based on Zaha's appearances and success.

Zaha, who joined Palace as a 12-year-old, is expected to win his second England cap against Brazil in February.

Both clubs have refused to comment on a proposed deal, but Sir Alex Ferguson has been heavily involved in the talks, having remained in England as his squad travelled to Qatar on Sunday for a short training camp.

He was named the Football League Young Player of the Year last season and attracted the attention of a number of Premier League clubs.

Zaha, who came through the youth academy at Selhurst Park, has scored 15 goals in 124 appearances for the Eagles since his debut against Cardiff in March 2010.

He is Palace's latest home-grown talent, following in the footsteps of Chelsea's Victor Moses and Southampton's Nathaniel Clyne.

Former Eagles forward Mark Bright has described Zaha as the biggest talent to emerge at the club since former England striker Ian Wright.

"He is probably the best prospect we [Palace] have had in terms of what he could go on to achieve," said the BBC pundit.

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727 comments

  • Comment posted by U14604311, at 10:58 24 Jan 2013

    Regardless of one's affiliations, this seems a good deal for English football- a football league club being fairly rewarded for their investment in youth development to nuture the player.

    Hopefully all clubs, those in the Premier League in particular now recognise the need to fairly pay for talent to keep the football pyramid working.

  • Comment posted by U15442268, at 11:02 24 Jan 2013

    he needs to sign Saha again to complete the misery for commentators world wide.

  • Comment posted by U15190675, at 11:10 24 Jan 2013

    Could end up being the best £10 million spent this season,
    YES its £10 million as it stands today. So its stupid saying he's not Worth £15m, if you are correct then £15 million will not end up the price but if ends up being £15m with the add-ons then its worth it b/c it means he broke in to a Champions league team and Won trophy's which the £5m add-ons clause requires

  • Comment posted by U14423177, at 14:40 24 Jan 2013

    #325 Rich Fallows

    Are you suggesting that I shouldn't be allowed the order a new sofa or have a conservatory built because the mortgage isn't completely paid off? I've always thought that since I've always been able to pay off the mortgage at the previously agreed rate without getting into arrears, the excess on my income could be allocated at my discretion.

    My mistake

  • Comment posted by tonyspooner654, at 11:09 24 Jan 2013

    Zaha is very very mobile, always on the move and will run at defenders with the ball, he gets fouled quite a lot due to it, similar dribbling style to Ronaldo! As a palace supporter i am glad that he is with us until summer as i hope he helps us go up and it will also help his development!

  • Comment posted by Matt, at 11:07 24 Jan 2013

    At the moment, Zaha is just another pacey young winger with some party-trick skills. However, they said that about a certain teenager called Ronaldo when he came to United as I recall. United are good at getting the absolute maximum from this kind of player. There's always the fear that he's flattered to deceive in the Championship though. Good decision for United? Let's wait and see...

  • Comment posted by McGaz, at 11:13 24 Jan 2013

    Buying youth is good, but fans need to realise that they need time to develop.

    Just look at the change in Ronaldo!

    Zaha doesn't have many assists or goals yet, but looks like he has ability. So Fergie will try to teach him to be more effective on the pitch.

  • Comment posted by Bjorntorekvarme-leg-end, at 18:34 24 Jan 2013

    Completely off topic but just seen Newcastle have signed another Frenchman. I beggining to think their scouts invested in a Eurostar season ticket and really what to make the most of it!

  • Comment posted by AGlassOfRed, at 15:31 24 Jan 2013

    I think it's good to see some of our big clubs are bringing in good English young players. The future is looking good for England. It's a shame teams like Man City and Chelsea are not looking at young English talent.

  • Comment posted by U14423177, at 13:31 24 Jan 2013

    #235 Stephen Huish....Ironite is a reference to who I support, it's not West Ham or Man United. The difference is that without one hugely affluent man, City would be a mid-table outfit, whereas United's wealth is the bi-product of thousands who are willing to pay to watch them, and see that revenue re-invested.

    Call me old fashioned, I just think football clubs belong to their fans first.

  • Comment posted by SaChingford, at 20:21 24 Jan 2013

    Utd fans get yer old Saha shirts turn the 'S' around and hey economic Zaha shirts Brilliant eh!

    Chelsea have done this with their old Drogba shirts by picking off the Dro and hey presto Ba shirts (but then CFC fans are tight g!ts)

    Now what shall I do with this Sherringham shirt?

  • Comment posted by ItsCPFCforme, at 18:33 24 Jan 2013

    I'm a Palace fan (in case you can't tell from my username) and to say Zaha only scored 7 in 82 over the previous seasons before this is silly. We were a terrible team then! We finished, since 2010, 21st, 20th, and 17th. He hasn't scored loads because 1. He's not a goal-scoring type of player!!!! GAH!! How many times do we have to say this??? 2. He was in a dog sh*t of an awful team.

  • Comment posted by ManU4eva, at 18:29 24 Jan 2013

    @530: No shame on being on United's bench. Chicho, Wellbeck, Giggs, Scholes, Ando, Nani, Jones, Smalling to name a few. His time will come.
    I don't think you get the fact that he is bought for the future, like Powell. Some gambles pay, some don't. Time will tell.
    Fergie knows what he is doing.

  • Comment posted by U15296211, at 18:26 24 Jan 2013

    Manchester United and Liverpool are still the only two big teams who stay true to their nation and try their best to have a team consisting of mainly English players, its great to see, even though im Irish!

  • Comment posted by Owain ap Gruffudd, at 18:26 24 Jan 2013

    Why isn't this another forum about Eden Hazard? I'm not sure three is enough. Perhaps we can discuss it here too!

  • Comment posted by Androoo, at 18:22 24 Jan 2013

    (I know being a CFC fan this is ironic) This is fantastic, everyone wins. Crystal palace get 15 mil, Man U get a fantastic potential, Zaha (if the loan to championship does happen) gets plenty of football, and as Englishmen we see a potential new star play at the level of football he needs to to become great!

  • Comment posted by Chris, at 18:06 24 Jan 2013

    how many of the people making judgments have ever seen him play more than a couple of times. There's not many Palace fans commenting on here and i can't imagine why most Utd fans are watching Palace on a regular basis especially as being a Championship they're only on the TV a handful of times a season.

    He may turn out to be a bargain or a flop but how about we all watch him play a while first

  • Comment posted by Weallfollowunited, at 11:42 24 Jan 2013

    #55
    It's the same price as Oxlade-Chamberlain and he'd only played in League 1.

  • Comment posted by Boggy Marsh, at 11:15 24 Jan 2013

    Hope they'll have a ballboy present at the medical to test his reactions :-)

  • Comment posted by U15549952, at 00:32 25 Jan 2013

    The boy has an engine but no steering wheel. Not sure bout this athlete being a top prem player.....nani mk2.

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