‘I felt that’: Jesse Lingard shares real reason he chose Nottingham Forest over West Ham

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Nottingham Forest forward Jesse Lingard has explained why he chose to sign for the club over West Ham. The 29-year-old rejected the advances of the Hammers after choosing to walk away from Manchester United in the summer.

Lingard made 232 appearances for the Red Devils. Last season proved a frustrating one for the versatile performer, however, and he played very little football under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick.

Now, he’s hoping to help Forest keep their place in the Premier League. Prior to the World Cup break, Lingard was just starting to get into his stride and played well in games against Tottenham and Crystal Palace.

The man with 32 England caps to his name will head back to Old Trafford when Forest return to action. Steve Cooper takes his team to the Theatre of Dreams shortly after Christmas to resume their Premier League game.

So why did Lingard choose the newly promoted Forest, over West Ham? It’s a question that will have undoubtedly bored Lingard to tears over the last few months but now he’s explained his reasoning.

He told The Athletic: “I knew it would benefit me if I moved to Nottingham. I had lots of conversations with the owners; with the Marinakis family. They showed a lot of love towards me. You have to go to a team where you feel wanted. I felt that more from them than anyone else.”

Lingard has explained why he chose Forest over West Ham

It’s hard not to feel some sympathy for Lingard. He takes more flak than most other players in the Premier League and it’s merely because he likes to spend time using social media and playing video games in his spare time.

Naturally, Lingard would have hoped to claim more goals and assists by this point of the season. However, a shorter pre-season hampered his preparation and he’s been constantly playing a chasing game.

Lingard now has the love of the Forest faithful. It would have been very easy for the player to go to West Ham after a successful loan spell there but he chose the challenge of keeping Forest in the division instead.

For that, he should be lauded instead of criticised but here we are. Forest will hope that Lingard can pick up where he left off when football returns and start lifting the Reds up the Premier League.