Free-agent Zaha targeted by Roma after Zirkzee stays at Manchester United

Roma are pursuing Wilfried Zaha as a free-agent signing after their attempts to recruit Joshua Zirkzee collapsed when the Dutch striker stayed at Manchester United beyond the summer transfer deadline.

The Italian club had been tracking Zirkzee, who was also linked with Juventus and Napoli, but all three moves fell through. With that avenue closed, Gian Piero Gasperini’s side have shifted focus to Zaha, according to Gazzetta dello Sport, who report Roma see the 33-year-old as a left-wing option capable of cutting inside — a hallmark of his game throughout his career.

Because Zaha is unattached, he remains eligible to sign for a new club despite the transfer window having closed. He was officially released by Galatasaray this summer after a turbulent spell that included a loan to Lyon in 2024 and a further loan to MLS side Charlotte FC earlier this year.

Zaha’s connection to Manchester United is a notable footnote in the club’s history. Ferguson signed him from Crystal Palace for £15m in January 2013 — the legendary manager’s final transfer — but Zaha arrived at Old Trafford just as David Moyes took charge. Moyes gave him only 28 minutes of Premier League football before loaning him to Cardiff City; he was subsequently loaned back to Palace under Louis van Gaal and eventually made a permanent return to Selhurst Park.

In a 2018 interview, Zaha spoke candidly about the difficulties he faced as a teenager at United. “There were rumours that the reason I wasn’t playing for United was because I slept with David Moyes’s daughter, and no one at United attempted to clear that up,” he said. “So I was fighting my demons by myself, these rumours that I knew weren’t true. I was dealing with this at 19, living in Manchester by myself, nowhere near anyone else.”

Despite that difficult chapter, Zaha went on to build one of the most impressive careers in Premier League history for a player outside the traditional top six, scoring 68 goals and contributing 30 assists in 291 top-flight appearances for Palace. Roma had previously registered interest in him during the summer of 2023 before he opted for Galatasaray, making this a renewed pursuit of a player they have long admired.

Zaha had been training at Crystal Palace throughout the summer, but the south London club chose not to re-sign him on a permanent basis.