Man United's Zaha charged over rude gesture

LONDON (AFP) –

Crystal Palace’s English forward Wilfried Zaha plays at the Britannia stadium, Stoke-on-Trent, central England, on January 15, 2013. Zaha has been charged with improper conduct over allegations he made an obscene gesture to Leeds United supporters while playing on loan for Crystal Palace, the Football Association announced on Tuesday.

Manchester United forward Wilfried Zaha has been charged with improper conduct over allegations he made an obscene gesture to Leeds United supporters while playing on loan for Crystal Palace, the Football Association announced on Tuesday.

Zaha joined United from Palace in the January transfer window for an initial fee of £10 million ($14.9 million, 11.4 million euros) but was promptly loaned back to the Championship club.

The 20-year-old appeared to make an offensive gesture towards Leeds’ fans after being barracked during Palace’s 2-2 draw against the Yorkshire club at the weekend.

He later apologised for his behaviour on Twitter, writing: “I…wanted to apologise for the gesture I did towards the Leeds fans in yesterday’s game. Very unprofessional from me.”

Palace manager Ian Holloway has also been charged by the FA over allegations of misconduct towards the match officials during the same game.

Both Zaha and Holloway have until 1600GMT on Friday to respond to the charges.