Gary Neville has criticised Nottingham Forest live on Sky Sports for their summer signing of Jesse Lingard. The Reds added 22 new players to their ranks during the first transfer window of the season; with seven more being signed in January.
One of those was Jesse Lingard and Neville didn’t get that signing. He has suggested that it was a little bit careless given that it came on a single-year deal and saw him get a sizeable salary.
Lingard hasn’t scored a goal or registered an assist in the Premier League. As a result, they won’t be offering him an extension regardless of the league they’re in and it looks like a failed signing.
Neville was covering yesterday’s defeat against Manchester United. He criticised the team in the 87th minute when Lingard was introduced; suggesting they got their summer recruitment drive badly wrong.
He told Sky Sports: “Take it back to the start of the season where they signed Jesse Lingard on a one-year deal – even that, as a strategy, you just start to ask questions.
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“Obviously, Jesse Lingard was asked questions but also Nottingham Forest were as well. How does that fit in? Why a one-year contract? It’s just a little bit reckless.”
Forest criticised by Neville for signing Lingard
The Reds targeted some younger additions in the summer, with one eye firmly on the future. At the same time, the club thought that some proven Premier League experience was crucial too.
Forest haven’t seen the best of Lingard. He scored and claimed an assist during a Carabao Cup match against Tottenham ahead of the World Cup and he did look close to full fitness.
It’s been very difficult for Lingard since the turn of the year. He’s struggled with injuries to his knee, Achilles and hamstring which in turn has seen his progress hampered somewhat.
Still, Neville has the beauty of hindsight when offering his opinion. Forest picked Lingard up for his Premier League experience and every transfer could always prove to be a bad one.