A vast amount of Crystal Palace players will be participating in the World Cup this summer.
Jean-Philippe Mateta and Maxence Lacroix have been called up by France, while Daichi Kamada is set to represent Japan. Jefferson Lerma and Daniel Munoz will be with Colombia, while Dean Henderson and Adam Wharton are expected to be involved with England too – Yeremy Pino is also a regular for Spain.
Not to mention Chris Richards, who will lead his country out as the host nation.
Evann Guessand has been called up by the Ivory Coast too, but there is no room for Crystal Palace legend Wilfried Zaha – a decision Yannick Bolasie is outraged by.
Who deserves to start up top in the UEFA Conference League final? 🤔
Glasner seems to trust Mateta more at the moment… 👀
Yannick Bolasie questions why the Ivory Coast have ignored Wilfried Zaha
Zaha – who clashed with Mateta last year – has performed relatively well for Charlotte since moving to the United States, recording 20 goal involvements in 46 appearances in the form of 12 goals and eight assists.
However, despite that, and also despite the fact the World Cup is being hosted in the country he now calls home, Emerse Fae has opted to overlook the 33-year-old.
Bolasie clearly felt it was a joke of a decision, as the DR Congo international wrote on X (previously known as Twitter): “Zaha must play basketball (then).”
The Crystal Palace academy graduate has previously won 33 caps for the Ivory Coast – scoring five goals – and is undoubtedly one of the most talented attackers Fae has at his disposal.
Therefore, it is certainly an odd decision to leave Zaha – who loves Crystal Palace – out of the World Cup, robbing the man from Abidjan of what is perhaps his last chance to appear at the prestigious competition. He will be 37 when the next World Cup happens.
Who should we be looking to keep around? 📝
Hopefully, the Charlotte No.10 still gets a chance to catch up with some former Crystal Palace teammates when they fly to the United States for the World Cup this summer, after this painful setback.
