Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson has revealed that Wilfried Zaha will be available for selection against Everton on Saturday.
The Ivory Coast international handed in a transfer request on Wednesday in a bid to force a move to the Toffees, the very team Palace are playing this weekend, but Hodgson claims Zaha will be ready to play should he be called upon.
Speaking to the media on Friday, Hodgson admitted that Zaha isn’t in the best of spirits after his desires to leave weren’t met on Deadline Day, although he is a strong professional and he will play if asked to, having trained fully on Friday. Hodgson said (via Mail Online):
I can’t say to you that he is jubilant.
I can’t say to you that he is delighted with the situation because it’s not the outcome he wanted. The outcome he wanted was to be sold and leave the club.
We did not want that. When I say we, I mean the coaching staff and the players. That was the last thing we wanted. We wanted him here with us.
For me as a coach and the playing staff, we wanted the player rather than the money.
He is a professional. He realises that. He is committed to the club.
Meanwhile, James Tomkins and Mamadou Sakho are both unavailable for the Eagles, as is winger Jeffrey Schlupp, with the trio all out injured. New signings Jordan Ayew, Gary Cahill, Victor Camarasa and former Everton man James McCarthy are all available.
Read Everton Verdict
It’s written in the stars, isn’t it? If Zaha starts for Palace, or if he emerges from the bench, I have no doubt that he will score against us, such is Everton’s luck. I’ll pray that I’m wrong, but it wouldn’t surprise me one iota if it comes to pass.
At the very least we could have hoped for the Eagles’ star man to miss the fixture but it looks like we’ll be contending with him, and Marco Silva will need to do his best to marshal his squad to effectively mark him out of the game.
Fingers crossed, because if we get such a painful dose of irony on the first day, it’ll be a long ol’ season.
