Man Utd 'open' to rejuvenated Jesse Lingard returning to Old Trafford

Manchester United may not have ruled out Jesse Lingard returning to the club at the end of his loan with West Ham and have been described as ‘open’ to having him back at Old Trafford next season.

Poor form throughout 2019 saw Lingard fall out of favour with United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, while the arrival of Bruno Fernandes in January 2020 saw him pushed out altogether to the point where his first Premier League appearance of 2020/21 came after he joined West Ham in January.

But Lingard has been completely rejuvenated by the fresh start and the opportunity to play regular football. He scored twice on his Hammers debut in a win over Aston Villa and had five goals and three assists to his name in seven appearances up to the current international break.

Injuries to other players even helped fast track Lingard back into the England fold this month and he will have a chance of making the squad for the delayed European Championship - something which would have been completely unthinkable just two months ago.

It seems that United had always hoped Lingard would rediscover his best form out on loan. They refused to include an option to buy in the agreement with West Ham to keep the market for him as open as possible and not risk capping his price tag too low should he thrive.

But a fresh twist in the saga now sees The Sun claim that United could even keep a reinvigorated Lingard for themselves and offer him a new contract to stay at Old Trafford.

It is said that Solskjaer, despite previously consistently overlooking him, has been ‘hugely impressed’. A decision on whether to have the player be part of the United squad next season will be made before the summer and could even yield an offer of a new three-year contract.

90min revealed last May that United have never wanted to force Lingard out, with the player himself still keen to stay at his boyhood club. His loan exit in January was eventually driven by a desire to get back on the pitch, which has proven to be the right decision.

But the United squad could use a boost in depth in attacking areas. Even at his very best for United in the past – 13 goals in all competitions during the 2017/18 season – Lingard was still generally a rotational squad player, starting only 29 of his 48 appearances.

That status would be unlikely to change should he be brought back to Old Trafford, but he would need assurances there will at least be more chances than he had immediately prior to his loan.

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