Crystal Palace sold Yannick Bolasie to Premier League rivals Everton four years ago – now he’s toiling in Portugal with Sporting Lisbon?
Forget Messi vs Ronaldo, Crystal Palace fans. Who was better; Wilfried Zaha at his barnstrorming best or Yannick Bolasie in his explosive, piriouetting pomp? If that question is tough to answer, it’s a reminder of just how good this former Bristol Rovers winger was back in his 2014 heyday.
It’s almost six years ago since that fateful evening when Bolasie produced one of the finest individual performances in recent Palace history. One night in ‘Crystanbul’, it was dubbed, after the Londoners came from three goals down to deny Liverpool the Premier League title in historic fashion, established this softy-spoken speedster into the English football elite.
For a few months anyway.
These days, Bolasie is 30 years old and stuck in the midst of a forgettable loan spell at Sporting Lisbon. Life just hasn’t gone to plan since a £28 million move to Everton made him one of the biggest exports in Palace’s history.
But, given the choice, it seems that many a Selhurst Park faithful would happily overlook Bolasie’s injury-enforced decline and offer him the chance to rediscover that golden touch in South London.
They do say the heart grows stronger after all. And who knows, with Sporting set to renege on their option to sign Bolasie permanently (A Bola), a second spell at Selhurst might just be a possibility.
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