Jesse Lingard to West Ham: Contract offer ‘mulling’, player comments, David Moyes verdict

Jesse Lingard’s future has been uncertain since he was released by Nottingham Forest at the end of last season but his next move could be close on the horizon after the latest updates on his status at West Ham.

The midfielder’s era at Manchester United started to come to a close when he was loaned out to the Irons for the second half of the 2020/21 season. Lingard’s switch undoubtedly reignited his firepower and he hit the ground running with a brace on his debut. In 16 games, the midfielder tallied nine goals and five assists and hit headlines week in, week out.

Despite his stellar performances with the Hammers, Lingard reportedly rejected the opportunity to join on a full-time basis and instead opted to fight for his place at Old Trafford. His efforts did earn him some game time with United, but he was limited to just 22 appearances across all competitions and the majority of his outings in the Premier League were as a substitute.

West Ham have certaintly been playing the long game when it comes to Lingard. Prior to his move to Nottingham Forest last summer, David Moyes and his side had entered talks over bringing him in, but once again he reportedly knocked back the offer. Instead, he joined the ranks with the Championship play-off winners and became their highest-earning player.

But after one season, 20 appearances, and four goal contributions in the Carabao Cup, Lingard headed for the door as part of Forest’s release list and has been considering new options since the summer.

The new season is well underway and the 30-year-old is still without a club, but West Ham could finally be in a position to sign their man after he has been training with the team in Romford. According to the Daily Mail, Lingard even featured for the Irons in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Ipswich on Thursday — a fixture that was put together to give the player chance to get into action and show himself off for his potential new club.

Both teams agreed there would be absolutely no coverage of the match made public as West Ham are now ‘mulling over a contract offer’ for Lingard. This is quite the revelation as only last month, Moyes was dismissive of the idea that West Ham were moving for Lingard again.

However, the manager now seems to have made a U-turn with his verdict, as he has reportedly been ‘impressed’ by the versatile midfielder’s standards during training. Lingard himself is seemingly open to the opportunity as well, having admitted earlier in the year he was ‘considering all options’ for his next move.

“I’ve never ruled any club out. For me, it’s just about picking the team that’s right for me. I just want to play football at the end of the day,” the 30-year-old told Sky Sports after his time with Nottingham Forest came to an end.