“When you look at my face do you think I am bothered at all? No.”
When Galatasaray winger Wilfried Zaha was asked about his 2013-2015 stint at Manchester United, he chose a cultural reference relevant to that era. But unlike Lauren Cooper, Zaha is still relevant. Moreso than he ever was at Old Trafford. Tonight he returns to a stadium that never felt like home to try and get one over on his former club.
The tale is well told. Zaha was the last signing Sir Alex Ferguson made as Manchester United, in January of 2013. But by the time his loan-back to Crystal Palace had ended, Ferguson had shockingly retired. Successors David Moyes and Louis van Gaal struggled to find a place for him. There were unsavoury and completely untrue rumours surrounding Zaha’s personal life. His public denial only increased the scrutiny. A return to Palace was the sanctuary the wide man needed.
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He departed Selhurst Park this summer as arguably the club’s greatest ever player. His 458 appearances and 90 goals for the club have seen him enter Eagles folklore. There were rumbles of high-profile moves, with Arsenal among the many interested. But at the age of 31, the Turkish Super Lig is now his stage. It is a stage that he has made the most of, logging a goal and an assist in his last two games.
There have been a number of times over the last decade where one wondered if United should have kept Zaha. When the likes of Angel Di Maria, Memphis Depay and Dan James floundered out wide. When out-and-out number tens like Juan Mata, Shinji Kagawa and Henrikh Mkhitaryan were miscast as wingers. Zaha was raw when he first arrived but boy was he talented. Given the player he developed into, a true talisman for his club and a trusted international for Ivory Coast, surely the Red Devils could have used Zaha?
You could argue they could use him now. Given the absences of Jadon Sancho and Antony, the loss of form of Marcus Rashford and the rawness of Facundo Pellistri, even at 31 Zaha probably improves United. Not that he’d be keen to go back. But in a post-Ferguson decade of transfer mistakes, perhaps Zaha is actually more glaring a misstep than some of the misguided purchases. Would United have been better off incorporating him rather than chasing rainbows with exorbitant fees for ill-fitting talents?
Now United risk the familiar sting of a player they have sold, thriving elsewhere, coming back to haunt them. Danny Welbeck has already done it this since for Brighton & Hove Albion, and not for the first time since his departure. Zaha has form in this area too, having netted three times against his former club while at Palace.
These narratives are particularly potent when a club is struggling. United definitely fit into that column. They have a 3-4 record in the league, with their most recent defeat ironically coming against Zaha’s beloved Palace. Erik ten Hag’s side also lost their first Champions League game, a bizarre 4-3 defeat to Bayern Munich. A Galatasaray victory, particularly a Zaha-inspired one, would be a huge mental blow.
Zaha has moved on and had a career that has rendered the “Fergie’s last signing” tag a mere footnote. While the winger speaks respectfully about his former club, you do get the idea he would see a Champions League goal against them tonight as a cleansing act. Playing on this stage has been a long time coming for Zaha. Now he gets to do it against a team that never recognised what he could do. Beware, United. Hell hath no fury like a player scorned
*18+ | BeGambleAware | Odds Subject To Change
