Crystal Palace’s victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday was a big boost in the club’s fight against relegation. It may have taken Sam Allardyce some time to get his team playing as required, but once again the manager is performing a relegation escape act.
A big part of Crystal Palace beating Chelsea was the performance of Wilfried Zaha. With Cesc Fabregas putting Chelsea into an early lead things looked worrying for Palace, but Zaha’s quick leveller, and him then making the third, turned everything on its head.
Allardyce’s defenders deserve a lot of credit for then managing to hold Chelsea off, but without the influence of Zaha there would have been nothing to protect.
Gazzetta dello Sport have included Zaha in their European Team of the Week, selected from leagues around Europe with the Italian newspaper ignoring their own Serie A.
It’s extra recognition for Zaha who has faced some negativity recently, much of it unfair, for choosing to play his international football for Ivory Coast.
