Hungry like the Wilf: Wilfried Zaha shows winning form

TROY HULL | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Charlotte FC midfielder Wilfried Zaha (10) battles Atlanta United’s Bartosz Slisz (99) and Matthew Edwards for possession of the ball in the Crown’s 2-0 win March 1 at Bank of America Stadium.  Zaha scored a goal and set up Pep Biel’s tally in Charlotte’s first win of the season.

Wilfried Zaha’s MLS debut couldn’t have been more of a whirlwind.

The Charlotte FC winger scored a goal and added an assist in the Crown’s 2-0 win against Atlanta United, making him the second Charlotte player to score in his first outing, joining André Shinyashiki. The match capped a busy week for Zaha, who was away six days for the birth of his daughter.

“I would call it hectic to be honest, but my mentality is, obviously it’s non-negotiable being there for my daughter’s birth, but then at the same time, work is work,” he said. “I’m there for my daughter, but then I know that I've got to go back and do what I’ve got to do. Everyone understands, so, yeah, don’t complain. I just get on with it.”

Zaha got on with it in a way Charlotte FC executives hoped for when the team signed him on loan from Turkish club Galatasaray S.K. in January. The Ivory Coast native is best known for his career with Crystal Palace in the English Premier League, where he racked up 90 goals and 52 assists in 458 matches.  The first match in Charlotte – before a crowd of 51,002 – couldn’t have gone better, which also led to recognition on the MLS Team of the Matchday.

“It was like the boys told me,” said Zaha, who played every minute. “It was a very enjoyable day. My daughter was born this week, and I can’t wait to get back.”

One game is too small a sample to weigh Zaha’s impact on Charlotte, but he was brought in to add spice to an attack that struggled to score last year. Zaha’s creativity in space opened opportunities for the Crown in the second half against Atlanta, where Zaha set up a shot at the top of the 18-yard box where Pep Biel connected to the far post after a deflection for a 1-0 advantage.

Zaha converted a rebound of winger Liel Abada’s shot on frame for the final goal on a one-time, right-footed finish. After that tally, every time Abada drive toward the goal on attack, fans stood in anticipation of what could happen.

“It’s the type of player we were missing from last season for sure,” Charlotte coach Dean Smith said. “We didn’t take enough of our chances last year. We’ve just seen one performance today with a player who's not fully fit yet. He can produce moments of magic, and he did that.”

Biel, who is working back to fitness after a preseason knee injury, showed his capability as well.

“It's very good for me to get a bit confidence, because was a bad feeling the last two months, but now I'm good,” he said. “I’m getting better day by day, so I’m happy. It’s very important always to get points, to win, to be a strong team in your house.”

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