Medical expert analyses Crystal Palace ‘message’ after Wilfried Zaha pictures emerge
Wilfried Zaha should be availabule for Crystal Palace against Norwich City on Wednesday (9 February) after he was pictured back in training.
That is the view of injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Zaha has recently returned from the Africa Cup of Nation where he was knocked out at the last-16 stage with Ivory Coast.
The 29-year-old winger did not feature for Palace in the 2-0 FA Cup win over Hartlepool United last Saturday (5 February).
But he was pictured in full team training a day earlier by official club media.
Dinnery claims that it was no surprise to see Zaha held back against Hartlepool and that he is likely to return at Carrow Road tomorrow.
“I fully expect Zaha to be part of that matchday squad,” he told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“He could even make the starting XI. He is their talisman at Palace, after all.
“They have had a really good, solid start to the season but they have dropped off a bit in recent games.
“The fact that he wasn’t involved against Hartlepool isn’t a massive issue. It is a good opportunity to involve some of the fringe players.
“We have seen the likes of Olise and Eze, who are coming back from long-term injuries, given some minutes.
“Zaha is a player for the big occasion and Viera will want to get him back in ASAP.
“Seeing him in training, that’s sending a good message ahead of Norwich.”
Zaha has scored five times and laid on one assist in 15 apperances in 2021-22.
He featuered in all four of the Ivory Coast’s games at the Cup of Nations in Cameroon.
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