'A shadow of myself' - why Wilfred Zaha failed to make the grade at Manchester United ahead of return

Wilfried Zaha will grace the Old Trafford pitch tonight for a big European night, but perhaps a decade later than he envisaged.

The winger will be in the Galatasaray ranks for the Champions League clash against Manchester United having moved to Turkey this summer. It is a little more than 10 years since he signed for the Reds as a huge prospect with bags of potential but the move didn't work out on or off the pitch.

Zaha didn't make a Premier League start and barely featured. He was sold the club by Sir Alex Ferguson but by the time he arrived after ending the 2012-13 season on loan with Crystal Palace following his January Manchester move, the Scot had retired and under David Moyes and Louis van Gaal, Zaha was frozen out and returned to Palace with just four United appearances to his name.

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It could and perhaps should have been very different. His move to United came after Ferguson's son Darren tipped off his old man, while Bobby Charlton joined Fergie in the initial conversations. At the time United were leading lights at home and abroad, but Zaha's summer switch to Manchester coincided with a fall from grace.

Zaha should have had the skills and ability to deliver the front-foot football United fans desire. Ferguson had told him he wanted to see him racing down the wing in the way Ryan Giggs did for many a year.

"Sir Alex Ferguson, who I’ve watched for years, tells me he wants me to be part of his team. It was all just surreal," said Zaha, speaking in 2021 to The Greatest Game with Jamie Carragher podcast.

"He only really said he wants me to play for Man United,