Jesse Lingard’s Nottingham Forest admission looks silly when compared to his first interview at the club

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Jesse Lingard’s spell at Nottingham Forest wasn’t particularly memorable or productive, making his latest comments on the club quite confusing.

Lingard signed for Forest in 2022 in what looked to be a remarkable coup for the club, given that promotion to the Premier League had only been achieved the season before.

The former Manchester United man had been electric on loan at West Ham prior to his move to the City Ground, but Lingard was criticised during his time at Forest for not having the desired impact.

Lingard left Forest on a free transfer after just one season and has been rebuilding his career in South Korea. Strangely, though, he has just made a bizarre dig at the Reds that will have irritated Forest fans.

Jesse Lingard says he had ‘no choice’ in Nottingham Forest move

Lingard was popular in the dressing room, and while the move perhaps didn’t have the impact the club may have hoped, there seemed to be no hard feelings on either side.

However, speaking to the BBC, Lingard has opened up on his move to Forest, hinting that he never wanted to join the club in the first place.

He said: “I basically didn’t have a choice. I knew what I wanted to do, I knew what offer was on the table from West Ham and what was on offer from Forest – there was a place I’d have preferred to go.

“[…]Now I can see people didn’t have my best interests [at heart]. But obviously West Ham didn’t happen. I went to Forest. The Forest thing happened for a reason, for me to find out certain things.”

To say that the move didn’t work out is one thing, but to suggest that he never wanted to join Forest in the first place will leave a sour taste in Reds fans’ mouths.

The comments are made even odder when comparing them to what Lingard said upon signing for Forest, quotes that suggested he was more than excited to be at the club.

Jesse Lingard claimed to ‘love’ the Nottingham Forest ‘project’

A new signing saying they are happy to sign for a club is a standard part of the announcement content, so it can be overlooked, but Lingard went into specific details about why exactly he was supposedly excited to work with Steve Cooper.

Speaking to TNT Sports at the time, Lingard said: “I could have gone abroad for a lot of money but I want to stay in the Premier League. They [Forest] wanted to come to my house and bring me to London in quick succession to try to get the deal done.

“The manager and owners have been great with me – they’ve shown the love and intent to get me to the club. When I see that sort of love, of course I am going to say yes, but it had to be the right deal for me and my family.

“I can see the project they’re building and it’s going to look good this season. I feel a positive vibe around the camp.”

Lingard can be upset about how his time at Forest went, but to suggest that he didn’t want to join the club comes across as disingenuous when compared to the praise he gave Forest after joining.