Lingard thanks Hammers for loan spell

The midfielder is set for a return to Manchester in pre-season having played his final game for the Hammers on Sunday, helping the club to secure a sixth-placed finish in the Premier League and European football for next season following a 3-0 win over Southampton at the London Stadium.

It concludes a successful loan spell for Jesse, who has been able to combine regular minutes on the pitch with a return to both the goal and assist columns.

The 28-year-old originally joined the Hammers in January and was reunited with former Reds manager David Moyes in his search more frequent first-team football, having only featured three times for United in the first half of the campaign.

After scoring twice on his debut in a 3-1 win at Aston Villa less than a week later, Lingard kept his place for all 16 of the Hammers’ remaining Premier League games, scoring nine times and providing five assists as the club secured its highest Premier League finish in over two decades and a place in the group stage of the 2021/22 Europa League.

His impressive form while at the London Stadium also saw him earn a call-up to the England squad for March’s World Cup qualifiers against San Marino, Albania and Poland where he made his first appearance for the Three Lions since the Nations League finals in the summer of 2019.

Having made his mark in that camp, and in the remaining weeks of the campaign upon his return to club football, the United Academy product was recently rewarded with a place in Gareth Southgate’s provisional 33-man England squad for this summer’s European Championship.

With his loan spell now concluded, the midfielder used his official Instagram to look back on the last few months of the season with the Londoners.

“What a way to end the season,” he said in the post to his 7.5 million followers on the platform.

“Reaching our goal with this incredible group of lads feels amazing! We pushed hard and never gave up!

“I feel so lucky to have been able to come into such a welcoming environment, everyone connected with the club has shown me just how special this club is.”

In his post on Thursday morning, Jesse also expressed his gratitude to everyone involved at West Ham for making his time in the capital something to remember.

“Thank you to the gaffer [David Moyes] who had the belief in bringing me here. Thank you to all the staff that made it so easy for me to settle and embed into the club so quickly. Thank you to the coaches who helped me find my true self back on the pitch,” he added.

“Thank you to the fans who supported me from the second I arrived, it was amazing being able to play in front of you on the last day!

“And thank you to a special group of lads, as well as making some new lifelong friends, training and playing with you all has been one of the highlights of my career!

“Whatever the future holds, West Ham United will hold a special place in my heart!"

CHONGY BECOMES CHAMPIONS WITH BRUGGE

Along with Jesse Lingard, fellow Red Tahith Chong will also be bound for Manchester again having completed his loan spell with Club Brugge.

The 21-year-old joined the Belgian side in January, having spent the first half of the campaign with Bundesliga club Werder Bremen, and made seven league appearances over the last few months as Brugge recently claimed their second successive Pro League title.

The feat was confirmed following a 3-3 draw at Anderlecht, in which our young Dutchman was an unused substitute.