Zaha Slams Mateta's 'Disgusting' Claims Over France Dream Comments
Tension between former Crystal Palace teammates Wilfried Zaha and Jean-Philippe Mateta as they clash over France-related comments.
“My head's on fire. I have to clear up this Mateta situation...”
Former Crystal Palace star Wilfried Zaha has hit back at Jean-Philippe Mateta, labeling his recent interview as “disgusting” and “nasty.” Mateta claimed that Zaha mocked him when he discussed his dream of representing France on the international stage.
Zaha clarified that the conversation was just friendly banter among teammates, with multiple players joking about the difficulty of making it to the French national team due to competition from players like Karim Benzema. “The conversation that was had was his chances of playing for France way back when he wasn’t playing for Palace and there were 10 players that he had this conversation with and as friends, we laughed it off but we were joking around,” Zaha explained.
Zaha expressed his disappointment and frustration, questioning why Mateta would specifically mention his name when there were 10 other players present during the conversation. “Why would he say my name when there was 10 people there? Is it just because Zaha is the biggest name?” he asked, emphasizing that he never belittled Mateta or discouraged his ambitions.
“At Crystal Palace, right at the start, when I wasn't even playing, I spoke about the France team in the dressing room and I had teammates like Wilfried Zaha who were laughing.
“They said that I was mad to think about the France team when I wasn't even playing at Crystal Palace, but I responded saying that it was my objective and that I simply had to play to show what I could do.”
Jean-Philippe Mateta recently achieved his dream of playing for France, scoring in a 2-2 draw with Iceland after debuting in a 3-0 win over Azerbaijan. However, his celebrations were marred by controversy surrounding comments he made about Wilfried Zaha.
Former Crystal Palace teammates Wilfried Zaha and Jean-Philippe Mateta having beef wasn't on my bingo card for this international break. 😳😂
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) October 16, 2025
pic.twitter.com/CUksXDYziY
Wilfried Zaha has now responded to Mateta's claims, denying that he ever mocked his ambitions to play for France. In a passionate video message, Zaha described Mateta's version of events as "nasty" and "disgusting,” insisting that their conversation was just friendly banter among teammates.
“My head's on fire. I have to clear up this Mateta situation. Because he doesn't want to. I spoke to him and he doesn't want to, he's OK with it.
“This just shows me, all the time I played for Crystal Palace, people watching me, it's clear that they weren't happy for me.
“Because I never made anyone feel like s***. I never… everyone knows me. The only time on the pitch is when I'm passionate and all that stuff.
“But I'd never bully someone or say someone won't make it here or won't make it at all or nothing like that.
“It's disgusting when I see someone that I thought was a friend do that.”
Wilfried Zaha responds to Jean-Phillipe Mateta after being called out for laughing at his dreams of playing for France one day 😳 pic.twitter.com/uw7U0GBFod
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) October 16, 2025
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