By Daniel Feliciano

20th Jan, 2022 | 8:30pm

Manchester United 'reluctant' to do business with West Ham for Jesse Lingard - report

West Ham have seen their pursuit of Jesse Lingard stall because Manchester United don’t want to do business with a direct rival for top four, according to Sky Sports.

Lingard spent the second half of last season on loan with the Hammers and scored nine goals in 16 games, which has seen him linked with a return ever since.

The 29-year-old has been linked with a move to Newcastle United in recent days and Sky Sports journalist Dharmesh Sheth believes that deal is more likely because Man United are ‘reluctant’ to do business with West Ham.

“United are reluctant to do business with West Ham simply because they are direct rivals for the top four,” Sheth said.

The Irons currently occupy fourth position in the league with 37 points from 22 games, while Man United sit in seventh with 35 points from 21 games. They will face each other this weekend at Old Trafford.

Expected

It’s not a surprise that Manchester United don’t want to sell to a direct rival and it says a lot about how far West Ham have come under Moyes that they’re considered one.

The whispers about Lingard will forever be there after his six-month stint in the capital, but it’s seemed obvious for a while that a deal wasn’t there to be done.

Lingard will see his contract expire at the end of the season and if he’s still available then you can be sure West Ham will be in the hunt for him, but when it comes to paying a fee at this point it’s probably not worth it for them.

They’re currently doing exceptionally well without him and you can make the case they don’t actually need him. But his quality is obvious and his ‘unique‘ skillset would certainly help ease the burden on Michail Antonio up front.

In other West Ham news, ‘gifted’ star gives Hammers boost with early return for selection.