West Ham transfer news as Jesse Lingard set for ‘incentivised’ London Stadium offer
West Ham United are set to offer a short-term incentivised deal to Jesse Lingard during the international break, according to Simon Jones.
The Daily Mail journalist reported in his Transfer Confidential on Monday (4 September) that the former Manchester United and Forest midfielder will likely return to the London Stadium for a second spell having impressed while training with the Irons.
David Moyes is keen to add to his attacking options having failed to sign a striker before the end of the transfer window and is just waiting to be convinced about Lingard’s commitment before tying him down to a first-team contract.
Discussing the terms of the contract, Jones wrote: “An incentivised deal until the end of the season with an option is considered to be the most likely course of action.”
Lingard last was contracted to Nottingham Forest where he spent the 2022/23 Premier League season, but struggled to have the impact many had hoped, only featuring 20 times for Steve Cooper’s side across all competitions.
Safe choice
It feels as though Moyes and those above him at the London Stadium have handled the entire decision to bring Lingard back into the fold in East London with excellent care and thought, rather than rushing into a decision they may later regret.
The Hammers have worked incredibly hard over the summer to ensure that they have created a group that is driven to succeed both domestically and in Europe and it would have been incredibly short-sighted to throw a player into that team without them matching that ambition.
A hungry-to-succeed Lingard can be one of the most exciting and effective players in the Premier League, as shown in his last campaign with the Hammers where he managed 14 goal contributions in only 16 league appearances at the London Stadium.
Whether or not he is capable of reaching that level of performance once again, remains to be seen, but we all doubted that he would have the impact he did in his first spell with the Irons. Hopefully, at 30 years old, he can breathe new life into his career once again.
In other West Ham news, one BBC pundit was blown away by Kurt Zouma’s performance against Luton