Wilfried Zaha - Sold to Crystal Palace

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Brwned getting it right again. Zaha just hasnt that much raw ability. He likes his fancy tricks and is obviously quite a talent but he's just a level below of what Ronaldo was capable of. In pretty much every department of football.

1:30 in the video above :drool:

On the game today: I thought he looked quite good. Had a very slow start with a few sloppy touches but got better into the game. Shame he had to come off.
 
Well yeah, Ronaldo is one of the best players of all time. Zaha is a big talent but he's not near that level.

I'd say that from what I've seen Zaha is a better crosser (especially with his left) than Ronaldo was at 20/21 but everything else Zaha is good at Ronaldo was better, as well as Ronaldo being being great in the air which I don't think Zaha is- so in terms of level there isn't a comparison, stylistically there is a case though . When people see him warming up pre-game I think they'll realise just how quick his feet actually are- he is like a mini Ronaldo with his skills.
 
Comparing Zaha to Ronaldo is a fool's errand.

Zaha looked very sharp today. No polished gem he, but the boy will come good.
 
He loves that little chop trick.

So long as he doesn't overuse it to such an extent it becomes simple to read it could be a very effective weapon for him.

Thought he was very bright in patches. Certainly the player that excited the crowd the most. Just lacked a bit of support at times and was guilty of running into blind alleys.
 
Ronaldo had the ability but was a little light weight, how things changed eh? Christ...didn't he put on some mass?
 
Ronaldo was so brilliant to watch back before he decided to become a goal machine.
 
Also bringing up Ronaldo's game against Millwall is a little unfair as that was his best performance of the season coming right at the end.

Obviously Zaha isn't in the same bracket, but let's show a highlight reel from his best game come season's end, and see how he stacks up.
 
I actually chose that game to say "this is how he played against a Championship side at Wembley" until I remembered it was in Cardiff...anyway, the point wasn't that Zaha at his best can't match Ronaldo at his best in that first season - he probably can. It's just to illustrate that the difference in technique is remarkably clear. That won't change.
 
Godfather said:
His lat is out of this world.
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It looks like he has wings

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He reminded me of a young Nani rather then Ronaldo.
 
Brwned said:
I really like Zaha but I don't think he'll get anywhere near Bale's level and I don't think he's shown anywhere near the level of raw talent that we saw in Ronaldo at a much younger age. Ronaldo was exceptionally frustrating at times but he had much more in his locker - great in the air, a great cross and a spectacular strike. Zaha has a similar level of flair and awareness for playing the simple ball but there's not much more to it than that so it's a really tenuous comparison for me.



This is Ronaldo against a Championship side in his first season. Above all the most marked difference is an outstanding touch and all-round technique - Zaha's not at that level at all. Yes he'll eventually make less silly decisions and he'll improve his finishing but the rest of the stuff - the touch, the striking, the aerial prowess - won't just magically develop to the next level. I can see him becoming the best winger in the league but I don't see any potential world-beater there.
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Mesmerising performance by Ronaldo in that game.

I agree that Zaha has an obviously lower ceiling than Ronaldo. I certainly think he can become a good player, maybe at best to the standard Nani achieved in peak form. Which would be terrific for us, but comparing him to Ronaldo is unfair. If we get half the player I'd be happy.

I do worry that Zaha has a long path to being the finished article. Hopefully Moyes can afford him the patience that Ferguson would have so easily been able to.
 
Mainoldo said:
His feet are far greater than Nani's he's Ronaldo quick with the ball at his feet.
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Nani is infinitely better with the ball at his feet than Zaha no question, even if he doesn't pull out the step overs every time he gets the ball. His touch and dribbling are out of this world, and he beats a man way more than Ronaldo does.
 
Cantona'sCollar said:
Nani is infinitely better with the ball at his feet than Zaha no question, even if he doesn't pull out the step overs every time he gets the ball. His touch and dribbling are out of this world, and he beats a man way more than Ronaldo does.
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I'll rephrase it for you. He has quicker feet than Nani... and before I get in a pointless debate with anyone i am not saying he is better than Nani or Ronaldo.
 
Mainoldo said:
I'll rephrase it for you. He has quicker feet than Nani... and before I get in a pointless debate with anyone i am not saying he is better than Nani or Ronaldo.
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No need to say anything about a pointless debate - I never assumed that you said he was better than Nani or Ronaldo in the first place, I was referring to the 'quick feet' that you were talking about. I stand by my point, so we can agree to disagree.
 
We would all be best advised to lay off the comparisons between Zaha and Ronaldo.

How about comparing him to Ashley Young? If he can pass that test, then let's try Nani. If he passes that test, then Valencia. If he measures up well against Valencia then I say call it day before going absolutely mental and compare Zaha to Ronaldo.
 
Ruud10 said:
We would all be best advised to lay off the comparisons between Zaha and Ronaldo.

How about comparing him to Ashley Young? If he can pass that test, then let's try Nani. If he passes that test, then Valencia. If he measures up well against Valencia then I say call it day before going absolutely mental and compare Zaha to Ronaldo.
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In before someone says that Nani and Valencia are in the wrong order here. I don't agree or disagree, but it's inevitable that someone would have said it.
 
Brightonian said:
In before someone says that Nani and Valencia are in the wrong order here. I don't agree or disagree, but it's inevitable that someone would have said it.
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The order is more defensible than Young/Valencia/Nani but posters of good will can disagree on this one.
 
It makes me a little bit sad that Ronaldo doesn't still play like that, he's been tuned into a goal machine and cut a lot of the frills out of game.
 
Does seem talented. Hopefully doesn't get hit by the curse of the English winger... SWP, Downing, J. Cole, Walcott, Young, Bentley, Johnson, Lennon the list goes on and on.
 
shaggy said:
Does seem talented. Hopefully doesn't get hit by the curse of the English winger... SWP, Downing, J. Cole, Walcott, Young, Bentley, Johnson, Lennon the list goes on and on.
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this. although to be fair walcott seems to be doing pretty well these days. the reason why people say he is not fulfilling his true potential is because these guys were comparing him to theirry henry which was and is still ridiculous. he is at the level he should be now imo.

joe cole was a great example although i don't think we all sure what position he likes, whether a free role in midfield or a winger. and inconsistency cause him his career. young at villa was a reliable mid table english winger who can chipped in 10 goals a season and that was his level. at united he is always going to be a good squad player that's all.

the others on the list are just shit.
 
watching the Wigan game, really reinforced that Zaha is going to be rather frustrating to watch this season. Really great talent that often does the right thing and when things come off it is all great. But just as often we saw him dribbling into areas where he became isolated and ended up surrounded by wigan players and ended up losing the ball.

This frustration is only going to be worse if people keep trying to compare him to Ronaldo. He is clearly talented, but lets give the kid time to prove over a decent stretch that he is better than our current options first before we start comparing him to one of the best players in the world.
 
Dargonk said:
watching the Wigan game, really reinforced that Zaha is going to be rather frustrating to watch this season. Really great talent that often does the right thing and when things come off it is all great. But just as often we saw him dribbling into areas where he became isolated and ended up surrounded by wigan players and ended up losing the ball.

This frustration is only going to be worse if people keep trying to compare him to Ronaldo. He is clearly talented, but lets give the kid time to prove over a decent stretch that he is better than our current options first before we start comparing him to one of the best players in the world.
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Now that Giggs is on the coaching staff, I'd expect this to improve.
 
Ronaldo's dribbling ability has gone downhill since 2007-08. Nani is a better dribbler and is a lot more likely to beat his man 1v1 than Ronaldo.
 
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