Holloway lauds Zaha display in front of England boss Hodgson

Feb 17, 2013 12:00:00 AM

The Crystal Palace manager lavished praise upon his Manchester United-bound starlet, after a headline role in the Championship side's 4-1 win over promotion rivals Middlesbrough

Crystal Palace manager Ian Holloway has lauded Wilfried Zaha's starring role in the 4-1 win over Middlesbrough, with England boss Roy Hodgson in attendance.

The Manchester United-bound Zaha provided two assists for his side as the Eagles romped to a comfortable victory to keep their promotion hopes alive.

The 20-year-old, who is set to join United in the summer so a fee of £15 million, has one England cap to his name so far - and his domestic boss believes similar displays in the future will only serve to impress the Three Lions manager.

"In front of the England manager, I thought Wilf was excellent. We have a few who make a difference. He is one of them," he told reporters.

“This was as good as he has played since I have been here. He is literally as good as any chef I have seen. And he has roasted their full-backs all day and they will be glad to see the back of him.”

Holloway admitted to concern during the game after a "boring" first half against a team who have lost five of their previous six games, and implored his fourth-placed team to "aim for the stars" as the bid to return to the Premier League.

“I thought we moved the ball too slowly in the first half and told them that at half-time. I told them they were boring me. We upped the pace of doing things," he continued.

“We are getting stronger and the challenge is, can we get another 14 [wins]? That would be good, wouldn’t it? We have to aim for the stars.”