"It’s a no-brainer" - Noel Whelan urges 'fantastic' Manchester United star to leave the club in January

Noel Whelan has told Jesse Lingard to leave Manchester United this winter in search of regular playing time.

Speaking to Football Insider’s Russell Edge, Whelan said:

"He didn’t have a future under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer either. The young man’s got to go. I think it’s a no-brainer for anybody sitting there and watching Man United play at the minute. Watching him sitting there on the bench, Man United are not really setting the Premier League on fire and he’s still not getting a shot."

He added:

"So I think that says everything about what he needs to do and where he needs to go next. He needs to go to another club and reignite his career again like he did when he went to West Ham."

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Whelan believes the Manchester United player will have plenty of suitors should he choose to leave the club.

"There’ll be lots of suitors in there for him. He’s a fantastic player, a player that can score goals, works hard. He was back in the England squad when he was playing so well for West Ham. When you’ve had a taste of that and you’re playing week in, week out, scoring goals, back in England side and then all of a sudden you’ve been pegged back again, that’s your trigger that to get out of there."

He concluded by backing Lingard to seriously consider getting regular game time.

"Get this move happening. Get back on that goalscoring trail. Start playing 90 minutes again for a Premier League, because it will be a Premier League side he goes to. There are loads of people out there that would love his services. I’m very, very sure of that."

The English midfielder has featured just 12 times for Manchester United this season, averaging under 25 minutes per appearance. Lingard has managed two goals and an assist in that time.

Manchester United captain Harry Maguire issues rallying cry

In other news, Harry Maguire has issued a rallying cry for every Manchester United player. The team are currently in a bad run of form, with several reports talking about a breakdown inside the dressing room.

Maguire has talked about his responsibilities as club captain and has backed his team to deliver results on the pitch.

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Maguire has also backed Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick to deliver at Old Trafford. Reports had surfaced that the manager is not entirely trusted by the dressing room. However, Maguire has rubbished those reports, claiming that the players are fully behind their manager.

About the author

Diptanil is a European football journalist and sports editor at Sportskeeda. He completed his Master’s in Sports Management from Coventry University and has a total work experience of 7 years. A true expert of the beautiful game, Diptanil also studies the sport from the data analytics perspective.

Diptanil focuses on in-depth research, objective writing, and cultural sensitivity when creating content, and always strives to give his readers something new to take away from each of his articles. His ability to streamline information and let it reach a natural conclusion as opposed to telling a story with a pre-fixed narrative sets him apart from other journalists.

He became a fan of Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea after their record-breaking 2004-05 season and their 2008-09 Champions League semifinal defeat was a bittersweet learning experience for him. Diptanil’s favorite player is Frank Lampard who is known for his hard work and dedication as a football professional. He loves how his favorite manager Carlo Ancelotti strikes a fine balance in keeping the game both player-oriented and data-driven.

Outside of Europe's top five leagues, Diptanil follows Liga Portugal, the Indian Super League, and Saudi Pro League. His other interests include doing charity work, watching period dramas, and world politics.

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Edited by Anantaajith Raghuraman