Just a day after scoring a wonderful curling winner against West Ham, the team whom he helped into the Europa League last season whilst on loan, Man United’s Jesse Lingard could be in hot water with his manager.
With the Hammers keen to make his move to East London permanent, Lingard was seemingly swayed by a return to Old Trafford on the back of a promise by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that he would be an important player (per football.london).
Though the season is only a few games old, Lingard arguably hasn’t featured as much as expected, and that’s been picked up on by BBC Sport’s Garth Crooks.
“Can anyone tell me why Jesse Lingard is still at Manchester United?” he wrote in his BBC Sport column.
“A player who has the ability to score goals and affect the game as he clearly can should not be coming on as a substitute, filling in here and there, and playing second fiddle to anyone.
“A cruel irony took place at London Stadium against West Ham as the former loanee found himself scoring the winning goal for Manchester United against the club who got his career back on track, when United had thrown him on the scrap heap last season.
“I’ve no doubt that the answer to my earlier question is United are more likely to win trophies, but it’s no fun when you’re winning trophies on the bench.”
A section of the article was reproduced in an Instagram post, and the player himself liked what has to be construed as a thinly-veiled attack against Solskjaer.
It looks like the player might have some explaining to do – does he agree that he shouldn’t be at Man Utd, or is it more of a message to his manager about playing him more?
Either way, it’s not the best look from Lingard, even if he can feel justified in having some confidence back after his recent performances.
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