March 17 2015

Wilfried Zaha

Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew has told Wilfried Zaha to stop being a grump.

Zaha, 22, scored the opening goal in Palace's 3-1 win over QPR on Saturday and injured himself in the process by colliding into the upright.

The winger is slowly getting back in his stride after a failed transfer to Manchester United and Pardew says he must block out that bad experience and become more positive.

"There are two things with him," said Pardew. "Firstly I don’t see him smiling enough and secondly he takes everything like a massive disappointment. That’s a player who has been damaged.

"What I mean by that is if he doesn’t get a pass, he can have a little sulk – not for long, just for a couple of seconds, but that’s enough in the Premier League for something to happen. And he does it in training too. I’m saying this publicly because I think it’s important that he understands he needs to get rid of it.

"I think the Manchester United thing came too early for a young player who, let’s be honest, didn’t get enough of an opportunity there. He needs to get rid of it now and move on and build his career again.

"There’s no reason, in my opinion, why at his age he can’t get back to Manchester United again as a seasoned player who knows how to deal with the situation better."