Gary Neville backs West Ham to sign Jesse Lingard for ‘good money’
Gary Neville is adamant that West Ham will launch a big bid to keep Manchester United loan star Jesse Lingard at the club.
Lingard, 28, was struggling for form and fitness before he arrived in East London during the January transfer window, failing to make a Premier League appearance for the Red Devils during the first half of the 2020/21 campaign.
But he’s been a man reborn under David Moyes, scoring nine goals and registering four assists to inspire the Irons to sixth place and a Europa League berth.
Speaking to Sky Sports, former Manchester United defender Neville believes Lingard will stay at the London Stadium beyond the end of his loan spell.
“Jesse now needs to play every week,” he said.
“He cannot go back to Man Utd’s bench from experiencing this. He’s a star there so why not go there if you can.
“I am sure West Ham will buy him for good money.”
All about the money, money…
A deal to keep Lingard at West Ham boils down to one thing – money.
We want him to stay as he has helped to transform our team, while he has enjoyed an England recall as a result of his renaissance and looks like he loves life in East London.
Manchester United are unlikely to be able to guarantee him a place in their starting XI with talismanic playmaker Bruno Fernandes ahead of him in the pecking order.
But Lingard’s incredible second half of the season will have put a number of clubs on high alert and the North-West club are likely to whip up a bidding war.
The one thing in our favour could be his contract, which runs out in 2022, meaning Manchester United are likely to cash in this summer rather than hold out for what they deem to be an acceptable offer.
We’re unlikely to spend a fortune on Lingard or break our transfer record for him, particularly given the other areas of the squad we need to address ahead of a European campaign.
But we should still go as far as we can to bring back one of the stars of our season.
In other West Ham news, Irons plot swoop for ‘Incredible’ international striker compared to Van Nistelrooy.
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