£15m Tottenham target Zaha no better than player Pochettino discarded as not good enough

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A look at how Spurs target Wilfried Zaha compares to Crystal Palace teammate Andros Townsend.

Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha looks dejected

During the final week of the transfer window, Tottenham Hotspur were linked with making a shock move for Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha.

The BBC reported Spurs offered £15 million to sign the winger, but Palace stood firm and rejected the offer and any subsequent advances.

Zaha remains an intriguing talent but he is yet to kick on in the Premier League, after promising to be a huge star at a young age.

Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha gestures

He is still just 23 and has room to improve, but is far from the complete player Spurs would need at the position to make an impact in their upcoming Champions League campaign.

This is evidenced by a look at the statistics over the past three seasons, which show he is overshadowed by Palace teammate Andros Townsend, a player Tottenham discarded last season as not good enough.

While Zaha proves more of a tricky opponent for defences when it comes to his dribbling, Townsend is superior in other key categories.

This even includes landing shots on target, with his often wayward shooting a frustration for supporters at times.

Crystal Palace’s Andros Townsend in action with Tottenham’s Kyle Walker

While Zaha it could be argued would have a chance of developing and improving at Spurs under the coaching of Pochettino, he would by no means be able to have come in and demanded a regular starting spot.

This would in turn have made it tricky for him to improve, and Tottenham might just have been better off saving their money as they did to spend elsewhere.

Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino