Lingardoooooo
Ever since this pop-culture driven, effervescent youngster made his debut for Manchester United, Jesse Lingard was heavily criticized by various sections of the media. The consensus was that this lad lacked the quality, talent, and determination to succeed at such a huge club. Possessing the ability to score excellent goals, Lingard used to fade away for months with his poor form and inactivity on the field.
Even under Louis Van Gaal, Lingard was hardly ever used as a proper starter and always came on as a substitute. The English international’s best position was unknown too and hence he regularly struggled to make the desired impact. At a time when younger teammates like Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford were settling into the first-team, Lingard did not even make it into the squad regularly.
Apparently, Jose Mourinho’s arrival at Manchester United meant that Lingard was touted to be amongst the first players to leave the club. However, Jose astutely identified the player’s strengths and has effectively used him to the best effect until now. If last season was an indication, then this season has been the proper testament to Lingard’s talent.
Midway through the season when Henrikh Mkhitaryan found it difficult to even pick a five-yard pass out, Jose Mourinho was left immensely frustrated. Incidentally, into that busy December period, Jose preferred playing Lingard in the number 10 role behind Romelu Lukaku. Lingard has the ability to run all day long, and his tenacity is second to none.
The lad loves running with the ball and is a brilliant finisher. He does have a tendency to struggle against physically stronger opponents but makes up for it with his clever off the ball movement. Jose demands regular defensive work from his players. In Lingard, he has someone whom he can trust to track back and win the ball whenever required.
Lingard drops back to add an extra cover to the second line of defence without the ball. Moreover, the lad loves the city and the club. There is an extra enthusiasm surrounding him that is extremely infectious. With or without the ball, he always tends to make the most out of the given situations. With the ball, he is industrious, running along, looking for his teammates, linking up well around the box.
Without the ball, he drops deep, puts in challenges, wins the ball and then carries the ball ahead. He has scored crucial goals against teams like Arsenal, Chelsea, and Burnley this season and is going through his best ever term as a Manchester United player.
As a fan and a staunch supporter of the club, the reports of a possible new deal is extremely pleasing to hear. United are considering to improve his weekly wages and that would be a worthy reward for his exceptional contributions this season.