Crystal Palace striker Wilfried Zaha goes to Manchester United this week being compared with Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi.

Ex-Palace boss George Burley is convinced Zaha is set to introduce himself to world football fans in this week's Carling Cup quarterfinal.

"He's such a naturally gifted footballer," says the former Ipswich, Derby, Southampton and Palace boss to the Sunday Express.

"He impressed me from day one at Palace and you could see he has the sort of talent you can't teach and which no one else has."

Then came the remarkable comparison with Argentina's two all-time greats.

"Zaha is the type of lad people just bounce off when they try to tackle him - just, like Maradona and Messi.

The best player I ever played against was Maradona, and Messi is the same now. Zaha has the same ability. It's just an exceptional natural talent.

"You watch him sometimes and think, 'How did he do that?' and with his ability to take players on, he is second to none.

"He can beat defenders without thinking about it and there are not many around like him at the moment.

"You just can't coach what he's got and, like the other youngsters I've had, he looks like developing into a top-class player," Burley adds.