NEW YORK, March 5 (Reuters) - Shares of Zale Corp (ZLC.N) rose nearly 17 percent on Friday 5 March after The Wall Street Journal quoted the jewelry retailer's largest shareholder as criticizing former CEO Neal Goldberg.

The shares rose 41 cents to $2.84 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Dallas-based jewelry chain, the largest in North America by store count, has grappled for more than two years with falling sales, market share and cash reserves. Last month it hired turnaround expert Peter J. Solomon Co to help it find sources of capital.

Zale's largest shareholder, Breeden Capital Management, holds 28.3 percent of its common stock, according to regulatory filings. Breeden Capital is controlled by former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Richard Breeden.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Breeden, who is also a Zale director, said he did not have Goldberg fired in January but felt the company had not been led in the right direction.

Zale is currently being led by interim CEO Theo Killion.

Zale shares are down 66.6 percent from a 52-week high of $8.50 in September.

(Reporting by Phil Wahba; editing by John Wallace)