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Wilfried Zaha swaps England for Ivory Coast

Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha has announced that he will represent Ivory Coast at international level, despite earning two senior caps for England in friendly games.

The 24-year-old recently announced that he was deliberating over whether to switch his international allegiance, with his two appearances for the Three Lions coming against Sweden and Scotland in November 2012 and August 2013 respectively.

After more than three years in the wilderness, and because neither match was a competitive fixture, Zaha has taken the decision to withdraw his availability for England selection and will instead play a part in Ivory Coast's World Cup qualification campaign.

"The Ivorian-English attacking midfielder Wilfried Zaha has chosen to play for the Elephants, under the colours of the Ivory Coast, his country of origin," a Federation Ivoirienne de Football statement read. "The player has sent, on this Sunday November 27 2016, correspondence to FIFA to change his national team.

"Approached several weeks ago by the Federation Ivoirienne de Football (FIF), Wilfried Zaha has made his choice this Sunday in London. In the presence of his father, of Augustin Sidy Diallo (president of the FIF) and Michel Dussuyer (Elephants coach), he signed at the bottom of the demand to change his sporting nationality addressed to FIFA.

"Born on November 10 in Abidjan, Wilfried Zaha grew up in England, the country for which he made two appearances in friendly matches. However the Crystal Palace player remains eligible to play for the Ivory Coast."

Zaha has made 14 appearances for Palace in all competitions this term, scoring his second goal of the season in the dramatic 5-4 defeat to Swansea City on Saturday afternoon.

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