Dan Cook believes that Wilfried Zaha will struggle to get a bigger pay packet away from Crystal Palace if he joins another European club.
The Lowdown: Bumper deal from Crystal Palace
While Zaha leaving Crystal Palace as a free agent come the summer had appeared to be a foregone conclusion, Steve Parish and the Palace hierarchy appear to have made a last-ditch attempt to keep their electric winger.
It has been reported that Palace are willing to make Zaha the highest-paid player in the club’s history, with a bumper contract offer of around £200,000 per week said to be on the table.
Zaha is said to be a target for Al Nassr out in Saudi Arabia, and with Cristiano Ronaldo’s side reportedly offering huge money, Cook believes the Ivory Coast international would only get more than what Palace are offering if he did leave Europe.
The Latest: Zaha will struggle to earn more money away from Palace
Cook has insisted on the HLTCO podcast that Zaha will likely have to take a pay cut if he is to achieve his dream of playing European football for a top club.
He said: “We are pretty much presenting, with this £200,000-a-week offer, a situation to Wilfried Zaha in which he can take a significant pay cut – and I’m talking £100,000-plus – to go and play for a club who have European aspirations, because, I don’t for the life of me believe that even Tottenham Hotspur, for example, will come in with a deal that sees Wilfried Zaha earning more than he is currently in SE25, which I believe is £125,000 per week.
“So, say we do offer him £200,000, you are looking at a £75,000-a-week pay cut, which is obviously a very significant amount of money to give up.
“But if Wilfried Zaha’s desire is to play at the highest level possible and try and win things, and try and compete in European football from week to week, then maybe he will be happy to take that – and if that is the case, no amount of money we could offer him would turn his head.”
The Verdict: Palace should start looking for a Zaha alternative
It’s no surprise that Palace have gone above and beyond to try and keep Zaha at the football club as he has more often than not been the man that’s helped keep them stay in the Premier League and fighting for mid-table spots.
Zaha is indeed the club’s all-time top scorer in the Premier League era, however, he is on the wrong side of 30 and has just recently returned after four games out with injury, which could hint at long-term muscular problems to come down the line.
Therefore, that huge amount of money Palace have reportedly offered to Zaha could be better spent throughout the squad by improving the right-back spot – which is occupied by veterans Nathaniel Clyne and Joel Ward – and also filling the void Zaha will leave.
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