Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper reveals early impact of former Man United player Jesse Lingard
- Seb Sternik
- 27 July 2022
Nottingham Forest have underlined their Premier League ambitions by signing Jesse Lingard, according to manager Steve Cooper.
The summer transfer window has proved to be a busy one for Premier League's newly promoted side Nottingham Forest.
The club recently added Jesse Lingard to a long list of signings ahead of their first season in the top tier since 1998/99.
Lingard, who left Manchester United after his contract expired in the summer, was chased by West Ham throughout the transfer window but ultimately signed for the Championship play-off winners who were able to match his wage demands.
While he may come at a cost, Cooper revealed that his new star man is already forcing his current set of players to work harder in training.
The 42-year-old told the club's website: "It shows that we want to be able to compete in the Premier League. To sign a quality player like Jesse has given everybody a boost.
"He's been brilliant on the training ground, I think everybody has raised their game a little bit and I'm sure he'll feature against Valencia at the weekend.
"I had a very good conversation with Jesse, he had questions for me and I had questions for him, he's a really good guy and we're really pleased that he's with us.
"Jesse wants to play for Nottingham Forest, he wants to be part of this team and part of how we work and play.
"He's been a real positive influence around everybody so far, he's a really positive, good addition and we can't wait to work with him.
"He knows that he's got a lot to play for because when you play for Forest, that's how it is.
"We don't think too much about what other people say, we just try and do the best we can internally and believe in what we do. We silence out the noise apart from the one our supporters make."
