Wilfried Zaha has turned his back on England to take up an international career with the Ivory Coast.
The switch will be a big blow to Crystal Palace who could lose the winger for the month of January as he travels to the African Cup of Nations in Gabon.
Zaha played for England at u-19 and u-21 level before gaining two full caps under Roy Hodgson but since those caps were awarded in friendlies he is eligible to switch country.
ITS OFFICIAL! Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha decided to play for Ivory Coast National Team. pic.twitter.com/9aiJu8WeBc
— AfricaFootballDaily (@AFD_English) November 27, 2016
The Ivory Coast have been monitoring the situation for a number of years and have finally got the former Manchester United man to commit to the country that he left as a 4-year-old.
Last night the news became official through twitter with the Palace man set to make his second international debut on January 16 against Togo followed by matches against DR Congo and Morocco.
On Saturday Zaha scored his second goal of the season for Palace in their 5-4 defeat at Swansea.