Former West Ham United defender Glen Johnson has said that midfielder Jesse Lingard will regret not returning to the London Stadium and instead signing for Nottingham Forest this summer.
Lingard, who became a free agent earlier this summer after leaving Manchester United, impressed during a short loan spell under David Moyes in which his form inspired West Ham to a sixth-placed finish and qualification for the Europa League, a competition where the Hammers reached the semi-finals.
Despite strong links with a return to east London, Lingard opted to instead sign a one-year deal with newly-promoted Forest, who reportedly offered the midfielder a lucrative deal to play under Steve Cooper.
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Former Irons right-back Johnson, who played 16 times for the Hammers between 2002 and 2003, believes that Lingard will regret not going back to his former loan club, who will again be in Europe this year via the Europa Conference League play-offs.
“He’s ended up at Nottingham Forest because they paid him more money,” Johnson claimed as he spoke to The Games Cabin. “There’s no two ways about it. It’s not like he’s from Nottingham or is a Forest fan, I have no other words I can say about the move as there’s only one reason why he’s ended up there.
“He’ll 100% regret not making the move to West Ham. To be honest, his move to Forest highlights a short-term mentality. He’s gone on a one-year deal when instead he could have gone to West Ham on a three-year deal and been playing in Europe. He would have ended up making more money anyway.
“He knows West Ham, he knows the players, but instead he could be fighting relegation every week with Nottingham Forest, which is hard work and will frustrate him.”
While the Hammers did miss out on signing Lingard this summer, they have completed four permanent acquisitions. On Tuesday night, they completed the signing of Italian international striker Gianluca Scamacca from Sassuolo, having already signed Alphonse Areola, Nayef Aguerd and Flynn Downes.
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