TalkSport pundit Ray Parlour thinks that Manchester United’s Jesse Lingard will be given every opportunity to prove himself this season following his spell on loan at West Ham United.
In what was arguably a loan spell that could rival some of the greatest in the history of the Premier League, the 28-year-old was in sensational form for the Hammers at the back-end of last season, scoring nine goals and chipping in with five assists as he helped West Ham finish in a European spot.
Lingard was a second-half substitute for Manchester United during their 2-1 friendly victory over Derby County at Pride Park, perhaps a hint that he will be part of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s plans for next season.
Speaking on TalkSport, Parlour felt that Lingard will be given the opportunity to play for the Red Devils, and that if he didn’t, then he might look to force a move out of the club:
“I think Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will give him another opportunity. He nearly got into the England squad, he just missed out in the end.
“If he doesn’t play, the problem is he’s 29 years old in December, then he might look at it and say ‘well, if I don’t start for Manchester United, I will look at trying to move on and maybe going on a loan again or a permanent deal’.
“Whoever it’s going to be, probably West Ham will be big favourites to get him if he does want to move on. But now he’s got an opportunity maybe say to stamp his authority and say ‘look, I want to be a much better player for Manchester United.’”
TIF Thoughts on Ray Parlour’s comments about Jesse Lingard and Manchester United…
Should Jesse Lingard stay at Manchester United?
Yes
No
You certainly would hope that Lingard does get a decent opportunity to prove himself this season at Old Trafford, otherwise it would have been a complete waste of a loan deal.
And with his contract running out next summer, that just adds more emphasis to play him to see whether or not he has a long-term future at the club so they can tie him down as soon as possible.
It may be that he isn’t good enough for Manchester United anymore and that a club like West Ham is now his level, in which case they can cash in on him in January before his deal runs out and they move on from him.
Either way, they won’t find out unless they give him the opportunity to begin with.
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