Liverpool is keeping an eye on Crystal Palace midfielder Wilfried Zaha, who is nearing the end of his current £130k-per-week contract.
Zaha has made 288 Premier League appearances, mostly for Crystal Palace, and has established himself as a star at Selhurst Park.
However, it appears that the 29-year-old wants to try something new, and with his contract expiring next year, now is a good time to do so.
The talented forward has five goals and an assist in ten appearances this season, demonstrating the productive form that has endeared him to so many in London.
The Latest: Liverpool Monitoring
According to a report from 90min, the winger is subject to ‘heavy interest from several of Europe’s top sides.’
It goes on to say that while nothing is advanced, Liverpool is monitoring the situation at the moment. It also adds the fact that Zaha’s dreams of playing Champions League football, although based on their current form may not be a given for the Reds next season.
In terms of rival interest, the report mentions Arsenal and Chelsea as the main Premier League contenders, while abroad the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan, and Inter are also monitoring the situation.
Signing the Ivorian on a free could be a masterstroke from FSG, particularly as it would leave room for the club to address other areas of the team in desperate need of reinforcements – such as the midfield.
The experienced Premier League man could potentially still have a lot to offer, and could perhaps ease the burden on Liverpool’s current forwards. The club has struggled to truly replace Sadio Mane since his departure, but bringing in the Palace forward alongside another recent signing Luis Diaz would mean Klopp would have a plethora of options in case of injury or dips in form.
Regarding Zaha, he ranks in the top 12% for dribbles completed in relation to his oppositional peers across Europe in the last year, as per FBref, and would also likely bring bags of goals and assists with the Ivory Coast wiz’s willingness to run and attack the space.
This kind of addition could then give the Merseyside giants more options for impact off the bench, with the manager more equipped to rotate with good-quality depth.
Finally, it’s unclear where the former EFL Young Player of the Season will be playing in 2019, but a quote from Klopp in 2019 could get the Reds excited:
“Wilfried Zaha is a world-class player, and when he gets one-on-one with us, we’re one down,”
While this is a few years old and by no means conclusive evidence of the Liverpool manager’s current thoughts, it’s worth remembering as we get closer to a resolution to this situation.
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