From inconsistency at Manchester United to world class displays at West Ham United. Jesse Lingard made his mark in the Premier League and for England but now finds himself in the wilderness.

Jesse Lingard is a professional football player who current plays Nottingham Forest and the England national team.

He has had a patchy career, with seasons of inconsistency at Manchester United. However, during his time at the Red Devils, he won the UEFA Europa League, FA Cup, FA Community Shield and EFL Cup, becoming one of only three players to score in all of the latter three finals.

In more recent times, he reignited his spark on loan at West Ham United, displaying his true ability.

Lingard finally left Manchester United at the end of 2021/22 season, and joined newly promoted Premier League side Nottingham Forest on a free transfer in July.

But it didn't work out for him at the City Ground and he left the club at the end of the 2022/23 season.

In February 2024, Lingard has joined FC Seoul in South Korea.

 

Prospect to starter at Manchester United

Lingard joined Manchester United at the age of seven, and after his side's success in the 2010/11 FA Youth Cup, he signed his first professional contract with the club.

In his first senior year at the club he unused by manager Sir Alex Ferguson, and the following year was loaned out to Leicester City. He appeared eight times for the Foxes during the 2012/13 season.

After a promising pre-season campaign before the 2013/14 season, Lingard hoped to make his break into the United first team. However, he was loaned out to Birmingham City, where he produced brilliant performances throughout his short tenure, netting six goals in 13 games.

In January, he was then loaned to Championship side Brighton & Hove Albion, where he scored four goals in 17 games.

In the following 2014/15 season, Lingard made his Premier League debut for Manchester United, starting against Swansea at home. However, the Englishman would have to endure another loan spell away from Manchester, joining Derby County in February for the rest of the season.

The 2015/16 season was a breakthrough campaign for Lingard. He scored his first senior goal for the Red Devils in a 2-0 win over West Bromwich Albion. He would then go on to score four more goals, including the winner in the 2016 FA Cup Final against Crystal Palace.

The midfielder would continue his recent form in the following season as he opened the scoring in the FA Community Shield Final against Leicester City, as well as scoring against Southampton in the Manchester United's 3-2 over Southampton in the EFL Cup Final.

Lingard also aided Manchester United to European glory, winning the 2017 Europa League final, beating Ajax 2-0 in the final.

In the 2017/18 season Lingard went on to score eight in 33 Premier League games, helping his side achieve second place behind rivals Manchester City.

The 2018/19 campaign was mired with injuries, however, he still managed to score five in all competitions, notably against Arsenal twice in two games.

The Covid-19 delayed season of 2019/20, saw Lingard slip down the pecking order at Manchester United. He scored just once in 22 League games for the club, and due to personal reasons was limited to a small handful of substitute appearances after February.

A loan to London

Lingard's troubled 2019/20 campaign continued into the new season and Manchester United loaned the midfielder to West Ham in the January transfer window of 2021.

However, his move to the London Stadium was a huge success, with Lingard's form sparking back into life. He scored 9 goals in just 16 matches for the Hammers, which reignited his international hopes ahead of Euro 2020 and appears to have put him back into the first team picture at Manchester United.

His most notable display came in a 3-2 win over Wolves, where Lingard ran from his own half, dribbling past three players, to calmly slot it past keeper Rui Patricio.

Lingard returned to Manchester United for the 2021/22 season, but was unable to become a regular first team player making 22 appearances in all competitions, mainly as a substitute, and scoring two goals.

At the end of the season, and with his Manchester United contract expired, he left the club he had been at since 2000. Lingard had made 231 appearances and scored 35 goals for the Red Devils.

 

Footballer for hire

In July 2022, he joined Nottingham Forest on a free transfer, snubbing an approach from West Ham to return to East London.

But despite being on a lucrative contract he failed to have a big impact at the City Ground, making 20 appearances for Forest before he left the club in the summer.

After going on several trials with interested clubs, Lingard failed to find a new club for over six months, before ending up at FC Seoul in South Korea in early February 2024.

 

International career

Lingard has played for England at youth and senior level. He played three times for England U-17s, as well as being called up to the U-21 squad in 2013 for a friendly game against Scotland.

However, in 2015 Lingard received his first senior call up for a friendly against France. He did not make a appearance, but finally made his England debut against Malta in a 2016 World Cup qualifier.

The midfielder scored his first England goal in a 1-0 over the Netherlands in 2018, before being called up to the 23-man England World Cup squad.

Lingard scored his first World Cup goal with a stunning strike from outside the box in a 6-1 win against Panama.

Since then he has missed out on further caps during the the Euro 2020 qualifiers, however, his recent performances for West Ham earned him an international recall in March 2021.

Lingard was named in England's provisional squad for Euro 2020 and he featured in both of the Three Lions' two warm-up matches at Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium.

However, he was unable to make the final 26-man squad, even after the late withdrawal of Trent Alexander-Arnold.

 

Personal life

His paternal grandparents are emigrants from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Lingard is a cousin of Everton and England women's international footballer Gabrielle George.

Lingard has a young daughter, called Hope, from a relationship with a fitness model.

 

Net worth

Jesse Lingard's net worth is reported to be £6million.