Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha is being widely tipped to switch his international allegiance away from England, the country for whom he has already played twice at senior level, to Ivory Coast, the country of his birth and his home until the age of four.
Zaha was born in the Ivorian city of Abidjan in 1992 and lived in the west African nation until his parents moved the family to Croydon in south Londona few years later.
ICYMI: Wilfried Zaha set to switch to #IvoryCoast “ despite playing TWO friendlies for #England.
He'd rejected his country of birth TWICE. pic.twitter.com/G8y8cUvp9S
As such, the winger later went on to represent his adopted country at Under-19 and Under-21 level, before eventually making his senior international debut for the Three Lions in a friendly against Sweden in 2012 while still playing his club football in the Championship.
The former Manchester United player followed that up with another England appearance against Scotland in 2013, but still remains eligible to play for Ivory Coast under FIFA rules because he is yet to feature in a competitive senior international.
The rule which allows Zaha to change countries is the same one that saw Chelsea striker Diego Costa switch from Brazil to Spain in 2014 and Thiago Motta from Brazil to Italy in 2011.
Zaha hasn't been part of the England setup since his dream move to Old Trafford quickly turned sour during the 2013/14 campaign and Les Elephants perhaps now offer the player his best chance of establishing a real international career.
Growing rumours suggest that the official switch could be put in motion soon, while one BBC journalist even mused whether Gervinho's long-term injury ahead of Ivory Coast trying to defend their African Cup of Nations title early next year could lead to it being pursued even faster.
I wonder if this will speed up efforts to encourage Wilfried Zaha to play for Ivory Coast? https://t.co/Ny8ppdY6gr
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