Ex-Man Utd man that ‘agreed’ Newcastle United transfer training with West Ham ahead of proposed free transfer

West Ham are yet to confirm if they have signed Jesse Lingard on a free transfer, despite the midfielder training with the Hammers and the deadline for submitting their 25-man Premier League squad having passed. Premier League clubs had until 2pm on Wednesday, September 13 to submit their final 25-man squads with any player older than 21 unnamed in these squads ineligible to play in the competition until January.

However, West Ham are able to add Lingard to their squad in the coming days should they opt to sign the 30-year-old because they do not have 25 players over the age of 21. This means that Lingard, who has been training with the Hammers throughout the summer after leaving Nottingham Forest as a free agent, can be added at any time after the deadline has passed.

Lingard, who will turn 31 in December, spent just one season at the City Ground and failed to register a single goal or assist for Forest last term, with his only goal contributions coming in the Carabao Cup. A stunning loan spell at West Ham during the end of the 2020/21 season, where Lingard scored nine times and assisted a further five goals in just 16 appearances, convinced Manchester United to give him another chance in the first-team at Old Trafford. 

However, by January 2022, Lingard had fallen down the pecking-order and looked set to switch Manchester for Newcastle in the winter window. That move fell through though, despite both Lingard and Newcastle being very interested in a transfer. 

Lingard thus left the Red Devil’s as a free agent at the end of the season to join newly-promoted Nottingham Forest.