According to The Sun, West Ham United may now have to pay a huge £40million to sign Jesse Lingard from Manchester United this summer.
It’s claimed that West Ham refused to put a £20million purchase clause in the deal when they took Lingard on loan from United during the January window.
Now, they face a bill of twice that amount if they want to sign Lingard full-time at the end of the season, with United seemingly sensing the opportunity to land a huge chunk of money.
The Red Devils seemingly hope that Lingard has loved his time with the Hammers so much that he demands to stay there, but West Ham surely can’t pay such a huge fee.
Lingard has been sensational since arriving at West Ham, smashing five goals and two assists in seven games – and that comes after playing just three league games this season before his move.
West Ham’s stance is understandable; they didn’t want to be forced to pay £20million for Lingard this summer in case he struggled at the London Stadium after such little playing time.
What’s interesting is that, despite his goalscoring form and his England call-up, United seemingly have absolutely no interest in keeping Lingard and putting him back into their first team plans next season.
West Ham may be aided as few clubs would be in a position to sink £40million into Lingard, who turns 29 in December this year, but finding a middle ground with United may be difficult.
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