Darren Bent has urged Jesse Lingard to leave Manchester United before the transfer deadline, with West Ham United still keen on him.
After a twist at Old Trafford, Jesse Lingard’s future has come under the microscope in the last few days. Manchester United have made the shock signing of Cristiano Ronaldo, who has returned to the club after leaving in 2009. The Portuguese forward’s arrival could limit Lingard’s playing time even further, and a move could be considered.
Lingard’s time at Manchester United has come under scrutiny after failing to rediscover the form he showed under Jose Mourinho. The attacking midfielder has been fairly inconsistent under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, with the Red Devils letting him leave on loan last January.
However, over at West Ham, Lingard scored nine goals to help the club finish sixth and clinch a UEFA Europa League berth. David Moyes had since prioritised signing the England international this summer and has been unsuccessful in his attempts. Much of that is down to Solskjaer’s hints suggesting Lingard remains in his plans.
However, the signing of Ronaldo changes things for Lingard, and the England international could find himself more on the bench than on the field. Earlier, when Solskjaer preferred Anthony Martial over Lingard, it could have signalled the Manchester United manager’s plans.
“Lingard has to decide if he wants to fight past Sancho & Ronaldo or does he want a fresh start?”
“He doesn’t want to get stuck at #MUFC. The last thing he wants is not waste half a season. He won’t play!”
The Boot Room ask if Jesse Lingard should make the move back to #WHUFC pic.twitter.com/ZyjJ4dwbpD
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) August 29, 2021
As things stand, a move for Lingard, especially to West Ham, could make sense for all parties, while Manchester United could make some money via transfer fee. Former Tottenham striker Darren Bent feels the same way and he has urged Lingard to move away from Old Trafford before the transfer deadline.
The Manchester Evening News posted some of Bent’s comments from his episode on talkSPORT. Bent was heard suggesting Lingard might find himself in a soup at Old Trafford due to the options in front of him.
Bent said, “Jesse does not want to get stuck [at United], does he. In terms of, [Cristiano] Ronaldo is going to play, [Jadon] Sancho is going to play, [Marcus] Rashford is going to play when he comes back from injury, Martial is still there. [Mason] Greenwood. Obviously, Fernandes is always going to play. [Paul] Pogba’s been brilliant. He does not want to waste half a season. He is not going to play.”
Whether Lingard indeed decides to push for a late departure from Manchester United remains to be seen. With West Ham signing Nikola Vlasic on Deadline Day, the English international could well have stay put at his current club before looking for options in January.
