West Ham United now edges closer to Jesse Lingard transfer decision as Sky Sports shares footage
West Ham United may now be edging closer to a decision on Jesse Lingard’s future as he was pictured training with the squad ahead of their clash with Manchester City on Saturday 16 September.
Sky Sports News shared new footage (13 September) from Rush Green, where the 30-year-old was shown smiling in training, and that West Ham are one of the teams who can sign players past the Premier League registration deadline due to having fewer than 25 players over 21.
Lingard has trained with the club for several weeks to build up his fitness after being released by Nottingham Forest and took part in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Ipswich Town (7 September) in order for David Moyes and his coaching staff to assess him ahead of a possible free transfer.
Daily Mail journalist Kieran Gill, writing on the Daily Mail live blog (13 September), reported that club insiders have suggested a deal with the Hammers is now seen as unlikely.
“He trained with the first team at Rush Green today,” he said.
“However, West Ham insiders are now suggesting it is unlikely they will snap up Lingard.
“The decision is ultimately down to David Moyes.”
Moyes is supposedly still keen to add to his attacking options having failed to sign a striker before the end of the transfer window and the England international seems the perfect risk-free option to bolster their ranks again after his previous success in East London.
West Ham certainly have a decision to make on his future and the fact that the former Manchester United forward has been training with the club and the East Londoners even paying for his commute and accommodation [6foot2, 13 September] for so long certainly suggests a potential new deal at a second spell at the London Stadium.
And the way Lingard has been conducting himself in Hammers training sessions as the latest footage emerging from Rush Green shows, the 30-year-old certainly seems pretty confident he’ll still remain a Premier League player this season.
The England international certainly endured a tough spell in the Midlands, failing to prove why Nottingham Forest paid him the big bucks to make him their marquee 2022 summer acquisition.
A hungry and motivated Lingard has proven to be one of the most exciting and effective players in the Premier League, as shown in his last campaign in East London where he managed 14 goal contributions in only 16 league appearances at the London Stadium during the 2020/21 campaign.
Whether Lingard can match those levels again remains to be seen, but Moyes knows him well and vice-versa and the London Stadium still presents the 30-year-old with the best chance of finding himself again.
A Premier League return for the former Manchester United forward could certainly be on the cards but surely a decision will now be edging closer as the Hammers will want to avoid any potential uncertainty in Lingard’s mind and themselves.
In other West Ham news, one Hammers legend tells the club to hand Moyes a new contract amid “uncertainty” around his future.