Charlie Adam has suggested on BBC Radio 5 Live Sport that the thriving West Ham star, Jesse Lingard, will be glad that he didn’t join Newcastle in January.
The ex-Scotland international questioned what Lingard’s confidence would have been like now had he joined the relegation-threatened side and not moved to Champions League-chasing, West Ham.
Lingard has been one of the top performers in the Premier League since he swapped Old Trafford for the London Stadium.
Those performances have resulted in him earning a deserved England recall and he will be hoping to feature for his country tomorrow night.
Nonetheless, former Liverpool player, Adam, labelled Lingard as a ‘clever’ footballer and shared his thoughts on his decision to move to West Ham.
“Lingard is a player I always liked,” said Adam. “I think he’s a clever footballer. He’s very dynamic. He can find space. And score good goals.
“Now, it looks like he’s in a clear mind. He knows what he wants. He’s hungry. But the only thing that has stopped him has been Bruno Fernandes. The stats Fernandes has produced since he came through the doors has been phenomenal.
“He (Lingard) has joined a team that was playing well at the time. Can you imagine, I seen him linked with a Newcast/le and a Brighton, things like that, who are down the bottom of the league.
“What would his confidence be like now (if he joined them)? But now he’s gone into a side that are winning the majority of their games and are in the top half and it’s taken his game to another level.”
It could have been a lot different for Lingard because those in the North East were keen to snap him up during the winter transfer window.
Now, the Hammers are potentially heading towards a top-four finish, whilst Newcastle are hoping to avoid a third relegation under Mikel Ashley’s tenure as owner.
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