Wilfried Zaha is expected to make a decision over his future when he returns from his honeymoon next week, with Crystal Palace remaining hopeful that the Ivory Coast forward will sign a lucrative four-year contract worth £10m a season and reject offers to move overseas.
Napoli, Paris Saint-Germain and Galatasaray are the latest clubs to have held talks with his representatives in recent days, while Zaha has already received contract offers from Lazio, Fenerbahce and Al-Nassr. The 30-year-old is likely to reject the offer from the Saudi Pro-League club that is worth a staggering £30m per season, but a move to Italy or Turkey remains a possibility despite both existing offers being significantly lower than the salary on offer at Selhurst Park.
The deal worth £200,000 a week that would make him by far the highest-paid player in Palace’s history was offered to Zaha in October when Patrick Vieira was still manager. Roy Hodgson was reappointed two days after Zaha’s previous contract expired last week, having guided Palace to safety following his return to the club in March.
However, it is understood that despite continuing to use the club’s facilities as he recuperates from a hamstring injury that forced him to miss the end of last season, Zaha has yet to speak to either Hodgson, sporting director Dougie Freedman or the Palace chairman, Steve Parish, about his intentions. Having played an outstanding role in helping the club maintain their Premier League status for an unprecedented decade, Zaha is believed to want assurances over their ambition to push up the table and potentially challenge for European qualification if he is to stay in south London.
Zaha is understood to be open to remaining at the club where he made his breakthrough as a teenager and will discuss his plans with his family this week. He became part-owner of local side AFC Croydon Athletic with Stormzy last week.
Hodgson has set Palace the target of a top-half finish for next season after ending the last campaign 11th, but may face a battle to keep his promising young squad together. Eberechi Eze, who made his senior England debut against Malta last month, has yet to agree an extension to his contract that expires in 2025 despite Palace his younger brother Chimaechi joining the club’s youth team last week, while there is significant interest from several clubs in Marc Guéhi and Joachim Andersen.
The England defender Guehi has been heavily tracked by Tottenham and others, while the Denmark international Andersen is wanted by Newcastle, but will not be sold for less than £40m. With Parish determined to provide funding for the club’s new Main Stand, it is unlikely to be a summer that will see great investment in new players, although that may change should Zaha decide to move on.
