Parker Warns Palace Ace Eze to Stay Away from United After Sanchez and Di Maria Failures

Bettingexpert recently had the pleasure of catching up with former Manchester United and Premier League winner Paul Parker, who shared his thoughts on recent reports linking Crystal Palace star Eberechi Eze with a move to Manchester United.

Eze Is a More Disciplined Number Ten Than Fernandes

While the transfer window has just closed, it doesn’t bring an end to the circulation of rumours. The transfer market has become a non-stop merry-go-round of hearsay, gossip, and speculation. The future of Eberechi Eze continues to be up for debate, even though Crystal Palace managed to hold onto their creative attacking midfielder for the time being.

Manchester United are reportedly interested in the 26-year-old, whose form last season earned him a place in Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 squad. Reports suggest United are eyeing Eze as part of a sensational four-man attack in next summer’s transfer window.

Parker, a fan of Eze, believes he is a more disciplined number ten than Bruno Fernandes but worries about the lack of a cohesive playing structure at United, which could hinder Eze if he were to join.

“His game is a little bit more disciplined than Bruno’s. There’s more structure in a Palace team for Eze to play in than there would be in a Manchester United team. He knows he can give the ball to people, and they’ll give it back to him because they know he’s a special player and respect his ability.”

Parker added:

“If Eze were to come into United, it would take some time for him to adapt because he couldn’t play his natural game—and that’s why you sign players. You want them to play their natural game. You wouldn’t get the best from him right away.”

Eze was linked with moves to both Manchester City and Tottenham last season, with Pep Guardiola said to be a big fan. However, a deal never materialized. After losing Michael Olise to Bayern Munich, it was a huge relief for Palace fans to retain Eze’s services, even if just for the time being. Parker believes Eze will benefit from being the main man at Palace in light of Olise’s exit.

“He came into his own once Zaha went, and it was him and Olise. He’s a good player, no doubt about that, but you wouldn’t get the best from him in this United team because it’s a selfish Manchester United team. It would be hard for him to say no, but I think playing a lead role at Palace would do him more good than leaving Palace last summer. I’m sure he may be a bit disappointed he didn’t get a move, but he can be a leader there for now. Eze will move on from Palace, but he has to pick his club correctly.”

Eze Should Use the Struggles of Sanchez and Di Maria as an Example

Parker’s feelings around Eze potentially joining United could be linked to the struggles of players such as Jadon Sancho, Paul Pogba, Angel Di Maria, and Alexis Sanchez—all of whom moved to United for big-money transfers but failed to live up to the lofty fees and expectations. Sanchez, for instance, opened up in an interview saying that he asked his agent to rip up his contract after just one training session at United, arguing that the club was in a bad place at the time.

Parker claims a difference in playing style, coupled with the weight of pressure at United, led to Sanchez’s failure.

“I think Sanchez is dramatising things. It just didn’t work out for him. When he was at Arsenal at that time, they played a different style of football to United. He was very quick with and without the ball, and Arsenal played very intricately. Whereas United didn’t. There was an expectation when he joined United for him to be going past people, but that wasn’t his strength, to be perfectly honest.”

Parker continues:

“He suddenly realised going from Arsenal to Manchester United isn’t the same thing. Manchester United are bigger on and off the pitch, and the expectations are higher. You’re looked at differently and judged more harshly than at Arsenal. It boils down to the fact he wasn’t up to the task at that given time.”

However, Parker claims to be surprised by Angel Di Maria’s struggles, considering how successful his time at Real Madrid had been. He also argues that both Sanchez and Di Maria’s time at United could have been different had Sir Alex Ferguson still been in charge.

“Di Maria is the one that surprised me because of his history before he arrived at Manchester United. Those players arrived at United under the wrong stewardship. The club had lost everything when Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill left. When big-name signings come in, there’s enough history that should be shown and told to those players. That’s something Ferguson and Gill would have done. This would have integrated those players.”

Parker concludes:

“Sanchez and Di Maria mentally couldn’t deal with it. They struggled and worked under the wrong conditions at the wrong time. If Sir Alex had been in charge, I don’t think Di Maria and Sanchez would have been walking away saying what they said.”

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