Crystal Palace avoiding the £50m sale of £130k-a-week star is an absolute no-brainer

Why Crystal Palace cannot let go of Wilfried Zaha amidst interest

According to a report in the Guardian, Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund are interested in signing Crystal Palace talisman Wilfried Zaha. The German side could make a move in the summer and they are preparing to smash their transfer record in order to buy the Ivory Coast international.

As per the report, Dortmund have already made contact with Zaha’s representatives, as they seek to find a replacement for Christian Pulisic, who will leave the Signal Iduna Park and join Chelsea in the summer.

Despite signing a new contract worth £130,000-a-week that lasts until 2023, the 26-year-old is open to a move to Germany and wants to play Champions League football.

The report says that Palace would demand over £50m for a player who re-joined them in 2015 after a not-so-good spell at Manchester United. However, here’s why the Eagles should keep hold of their talisman:

Palace are dependent on their main man to produce

We are all well aware of the fact that Crystal Palace are a different team when playing with Wilfried Zaha in their team. The 26-year-old possesses more threat on the counter, with his pace, trickery and the ability to create/score goals for the team.

Despite being in average form in front of goal (three goals and two assists) this season, the Ivorian has been the Eagles’ best attacker.

If any indication is required, his performance against Liverpool last Saturday was mesmerising, to say the least. When he can bamboozle one of the best defences in the league, he can terrify any back-line.

Furthermore, Palace are short in the ‘goals scored’ department, partly because they do not have very good strikers at their disposal. Hence, the bulk of the work in the final third is either done by Zaha or Andros Townsend.

The duo sometimes plays as a pair up front or positions itself in the wide areas to exploit the wide spaces on the counter. In short, the team is dependent on them to produce the goods in the final third, while others can join in when required.

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Thus, the Eagles cannot lose a player who is one of their key assets in the system they are playing. If they intend to become an established Premier League club and progress further in the table, they cannot let their best player leave. Rather, they should convince him to stay and make him believe in the club’s project.