Benteke urges Zaha to stay and build Palace partnership

(Reuters) - Having sold Yannick Bolasie to Everton in the close season, Crystal Palace would be loathe to see another quality wide man leave the club to a Premier League rival and striker Christian Benteke has called on Wilfried Zaha to stay at the club. Zaha was dropped from the starting line-up for Palace's 1-1 draw with Bournemouth at the weekend after the club rejected a bid from Tottenham Hotspur for the 23-year-old. Benteke, who arrived from Liverpool this month for a fee that could reach more than 30 million pounds, said Zaha had made a real impact when he came on, as Palace got their first point of the season following defeats in their first two fixtures. "I came to Palace because of the way that they play," said Benteke. "Everyone knows Wilf's ability on the ball and he helped us a lot when he came on. "Of course we'd like him to stay. I've tried to convince him to stay, but that's football." Palace signed winger Andros Townsend from Newcastle United in July but Zaha's team mates are keen for him to remain and make the club a real threat from wide areas. "The fans know Wilf and the character he is and how important he is to us," defender Joel Ward told reporters. "Would we like him to stay? Definitely. We want to take the club and keep pushing on so I hope we can do that with him staying and with some additions." (Reporting by Simon Jennings in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)