There is life after Wilfried Zaha for Crystal Palace – especially if the Premier League outfit raid Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt for Filip Kostic.
If you compared the statistics of Wilfried Zaha and Filip Kostic, you’d be forgiven for thinking the Bundesliga man was the one valued at £80 million.
According to The Mail, Crystal Palace will demand a staggering transfer fee for their long-serving talisman when the summer comes around, a fee that priced Tottenham and Chelsea out of a January deal.
That is a whole £70 million more than Eintracht Frankfurt want for Kostic. And this alone highlights the madness of the Premier League market.
Because, on current form at least, Zaha cannot hold a candle to a Serbian speed-machine who, according to The Sun (23 February, page 63), has been lined up to potentially replace the hero of Selhurst Park during the off-season.
In all competitions, Zaha has three goals and five assists to his name across 2019/20 – a tally that makes a mockery of that £80 million price-tag. Kostic, meanwhile, has set up 15 goals for his Frankfurt team-mates while netting 12 himself.
And that is just the tip of the iceberg.
Kostic averages more shots per game (2.7 to 1.5), key passes (2.6 to 1) and crosses (3.1 to 0.5). While they are not exactly identical players, Kostic is an old-school left-winger with chalk on his boots, those numbers should be understated (WhoScored).
He’s not only more productive but more consistent too. Maybe there is life after Zaha for Crystal Palace after all.
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