Zaha displays his class as he awaits suitors
WILFRIED ZAHA did what he used to do so well and the VAR system worked a treat — surely such positivity has no long-term place in this darkened nonsense we call 2020.
But new season, new hope and all that. For now that is a straw to clutch at, if only for Crystal Palace and if only for a while.
They are well aware that Zaha wants out and, as Roy Hodgson mentioned ahead of this fixture, a ‘lot of people are putting ideas into his head’ about how that could happen. Having scored a fine winner here, Zaha might just have reentered the minds of a few significant others.
Not a moment too soon, either. His great frustration is that acceptable offers north of £50million have not been forthcoming and yet there is no great mystery, given his subdued return of four goals and three assists last season.
If his contribution here is a signal of better things to come from a player of such considerable talent, maybe Everton, PSG and others will feel a little more emboldened to act on their interest.
Palace can only ride the wave as long as it lasts. And it is a wave — with the highs of the goal and a good finish for a second that was fractionally offside and disallowed, the lows of a late miss when Jordan Ayew was better placed.
Zaha can be a matchwinner and he can be a sulker, for now he might be a bit of both.
Above all else, he is of huge value to Palace, for whom wins are not to be sniffed at, particularly when you recall they took one point from their final eight games last season. After Zaha won this one, Hodgson was quick to reiterate the club’s stance, saying: ‘He thinks it would be nice if some club came in and paid the market price. Let’s see what transpires. For me, hopefully nothing. I think he still hopes a big club comes in and takes him from us.’
Indisputably, Zaha’s goal enlivened a dull trudge of a game, supported by a handful of other moments including the introduction from the bench of Palace’s new £16m signing Ebrechi Eze. He played only 10 minutes to little consequence but big things are expected. Also of note was the VAR scenario that saved Kyle Walker-Peters in the second half. Jonathan Moss had sent him off for raising a high boot on Tyrick Mitchell but, on referral, the referee looked at the pitchside monitor and changed to a yellow. Common sense, really — it will surely never catch on.
For Southampton, no redeeming features beyond masses of unconverted possession. They had 70 per cent of the ball, but created desperately little beyond chances in each half for Che Adams and Danny Ings. Vicente Guaita made two excellent saves, the latter coming in stoppage time after Zaha blew a one on one.
For Ralph Hasenhuttl, further exasperation will come from knowing he was facing a weakened Palace team. Even in the context of these weird times — and particularly the burdens of a condensed off-season — it is unusual to see a side report back for duty with five defenders missing, which is precisely the gift that awaited Southampton in Croydon. Alas, they were all thumbs in their attempts to get through the backline, which included the redeployment of midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate as a centre half.
Aside from indecisive attacking, Southampton’s undoing for Zaha’s goal was an error in possession. In the first instance, Oriol Romeu was responsible for a pass that was intercepted by James McCarthy, which in turn sent Andros Townsend on a charge down the right.
His cross fell to Zaha who, helped by the suddenness of the attack, had no marker for 10 yards at the far post. He hit a good volley, although perhaps Alex McCarthy should have done better.
The Southampton manager said: ‘You could see it was not so easy to switch immediately on.
‘In the end we were not quick enough and did not stretch our opponents enough. Crystal Palace always play like that. They give you the game and then have one or two counter-attacks. I can guarantee we will get better.’
Crystal PalaCe (4-4-2): Guaita 8; Ward 6.5, Kouyate 7, Dann 7, Mitchell 6.5; Townsend 7.5, McCarthy 7 (Milivojevic 74, 6), McArthur 6.5, Schlupp 6 (Eze 80); Ayew 6, Zaha 7. Booked: McCarthy, Schlupp. Manager: Roy Hodgson 7. southaMPton (4-2-2-2): McCarthy 6; Walker-Peters 7, Stephens 6.5, Bednarek 5.5 (Vestergaard 46, 6), Bertrand 6.5; Romeu 5, Ward-Prowse 7; Smallbone 6 (Djenepo 77), Redmond 5.5; Adams 5.5 (Long 85), Ings 5.5. Booked: Walker-Peters. Manager: Ralph Hasenhuttl 5.5. referee: Jonathan Moss 6.