“I even did a trial”

On form Spezia striker M’Bala Nzola has stated that he was once close to quitting football, thanks to being turned down by Crystal Palace as a youngster.

The striker has spoken to Calciomercato amid an impressive campaign in Serie A this season, in which he’s managed 12 goals and two assists for the Italian strugglers.

The 26-year-old was rejected by Premier League club Crystal Palace when he was a youngster and has worked his way back up the ladder.

“I went to Troyes when I was a kid, I even did a trial at Crystal Palace,” Nzola told the Italian website.

“The first of a long series. Everywhere I went, they told me no. My agent, Didier Pingisi, gave me a chance with Cremonese: we played the Dossena Trophy, but nothing there either.”

The Spezia star is currently joint third in the Serie A goalscoring chart this season being only behind Inter Milan’s Lautaro Martinez and Napoli’s Victor Osimhen

It’s been a long road for the 26-year-old but things could have been very different had the player quit after rejection from Crystal Palace.