West Ham are ready to rival Newcastle in pursuit of out-of-favour Manchester United midfielder Jesse Lingard, says Hammers' coach Stuart Pearce... but top four chase could count against David Moyes' side bagging his return
- Jesse Lingard is a man in demand ahead of Monday's January transfer deadline
- The 29-year-old is into the last six months of his deal with Manchester United
- He thrived on loan at West Ham in the second half of the 2020-21 campaign
- Stuart Pearce, West Ham assistant, has said they are keen to bring Lingard back
West Ham are keen to reunite with Jesse Lingard before Monday's January transfer window deadline, reveals Hammers' assistant manager Stuart Pearce.
Lingard, 29, is into the final six months of his contract with Manchester United and an extension does not appear forthcoming to keep the midfielder at Old Trafford.
The England international impressed on loan at West Ham, joining in the previous January window, as he went on to score nine goals and add five assists in just 16 matches.
Jesse Lingard is down the pecking order at Manchester United and is generating interest
West Ham coach Stuart Pearce (right) has revealed the London side are keen on him in January
Lingard returned to Manchester United with his reputation enhanced but that did not translate itself into game-time.
He has not started a Premier League game so far this season and with a World Cup in Qatar on the horizon later in the calendar year, Pearce knows Lingard needs a move to ensure regular football.
'Jesse is a commodity that is not playing for his football club that would be a benefit to a lot of clubs in the Premier League, that would be my personal opinion,' Pearce, now a first-team coach at West Ham, told talkSPORT.
'Our [club] is certainly one of them, there is no doubt.
Lingard revived his career on loan at West Ham in the second half of last season with nine goals
'Everyone is aware that we tried to get Jesse back again last summer and that will continue probably in this window as well but that is down to Jesse.
'Jesse has six months of his contract left, he will decide and Manchester Untied more importantly will decide what his future is for the next six months.'
Lingard, who earns in the region of £100,000 a week at Manchester United, is one of Newcastle's main targets as they look to bolster before the close of the window.
But Sportsmail understands Lingard is reluctant to join a Newcastle side battling relegation unless it was a loan deal, which is complicated given Manchester United are keen to recoup a significant fee, rather than lose him for nothing come the summer.
Asked about Lingard's future last week, Manchester United interim boss Ralf Rangnick remained coy.
Man United interim boss Ralf Rangnick (left) has remained coy on the midfielder's future
'With regard to Jesse, it's the same as with quite a few other players,' he told reporters.
'He's a really good player, I see that in every training session.
'For me it's normal that other clubs like, for example, Newcastle show interest in him.
'I'm not the one who is dealing with that. I know there might be some interest from other clubs. But if you ask me now what will happen in the next 10 days until the closure of the window, I can't answer that question I'm afraid.'
West Ham are battling Manchester United for a top four spot this season and that tussle could see any reunion with Pearce and David Moyes in east London vetoed by the United hierarchy.
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