Newcastle United fans admit that they cannot see their side winning the race to sign Jesse Lingard over West Ham United.
Off to West Ham?
The Sun say that both Newcastle and West Ham are keen to buy Lingard in the January transfer window, with Manchester United now willing to sell the attacking midfielder for £10 million.
At that price he looks a potential bargain and both Eddie Howe’s and David Moyes’ side are said to be among the interested parties.
Where West Ham have an advantage over Newcastle is that Lingard knows the club.
Lingard spent the back end of last season on loan at the London Stadium and he put in some hugely impressive performances during that time.
The England international has spoken about how much he enjoyed his stint at West Ham on multiple occasions since.
And Newcastle supporters feel that the Hammers are his most likely destination, even with their new found riches to spend.
Disappointment for Newcastle?
For Newcastle to miss out on Lingard would have to be considered a disappointment.
With the Magpies fighting relegation, signing a player of his quality would have given Howe’s side a real boost for the second half of the campaign.
But the appeal of West Ham must remain strong for Lingard.
He remains very popular with the Hammers crowd, he knows how Moyes works, and the London club are performing brilliantly this season.
West Ham are currently in third place in the Premier League table and the potential to fight for a Champions League spot rather than join a relegation battle, surely holds more appeal.
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