Jesse Lingard plans to enjoy England friendly against Austria
Jesse Lingard has missed out on England’s 26-man squad for the European Championships despite an impressive loan spell with West Ham.
Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate was probably in a dilemma as he made the decision to omit three senior players from his final list, and the Manchester United man would have been gutted to be part of the unlucky ones after making the provisional 33-man squad.
Nevertheless, Lingard has opted to remain with the squad despite being given the option to go home.
As a result, the Hammers loan hero will start when England face Austria today in a friendly, and according to The Athletic, a source close to the player says he plans to enjoy the occasion.
Good reaction from Lingard
The 28-year-old bagged nine goals and assisted another four in 16 Premier League games for West Ham in 2021, and not many players can boast of similar involvement in goals this year.
We are shocked that he was not deemed good enough for the final Euro 2020 squad, but his reaction has been a mature one.
Rather than sulk, Lingard is looking to put in a show tonight, knowing that he still has an outside chance of forcing his way into the squad.
The attacking midfielder is part of the standby list, with Southgate able to replace any injured player up until 2pm on June 12 – 24 hours before the Three Lions’ opening game against Croatia at Wembley.
We are not keen on seeing anyone get injured, but training ground incidents cannot be ruled out, and Lingard can put himself in contention for any surprise openings with a top performance against Austria.
Making next summer’s World Cup squad would be firmly on his mind, and leaving Man Utd would boost his chances.
Lingard has found a home at the London Stadium, and we think he should personally push for a temporary or permanent return.
In other West Ham news, Sky Sports share major David Moyes-West Ham update amid Everton links, advanced talks underway.
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