Ipswich Town backed for Jesse Lingard transfer decision - Kieran McKenna factor mentioned | OneFootball

FLW's Ipswich Town fan pundit gives his verdict on the club's decision to not sign Jesse Lingard

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Ipswich Town rejected the chance to sign former Manchester United forward Jesse Lingard as a free agent.

According to Teamtalk, the Tractor Boys were offered the 33-year-old following his exit from FC Seoul.

However, the Championship side opted to turn down the opportunity to add the forward to their squad for the remainder of the campaign amid their promotion push.

Lingard departed the South Korean club in December following the end of his second season in the K League.

He contributed 16 goals and seven assists from 60 league appearances in South Korea, helping the team come fourth and sixth in the table.

Lingard is now a free agent and it will be interesting to see where he ends up next, although it perhaps won't be to the Championship, with fellow automatic promotion rivals in Coventry City and Middlesbrough having both also rejected the opportunity to add the former Manchester United and England star to their ranks.

Ipswich made correct Jesse Lingard decision

When asked if the club were right to reject an offer to sign Lingard, FLW’s Ipswich fan pundit Adam Wilkin backed the call by the Suffolk outfit, suggesting he’s not someone that would have fit well into McKenna’s first team plans.

He believes that wages could’ve been an issue, while also citing the forward’s difficulty in England since his loan spell at West Ham in the second half of the 2020/21 campaign came to an end.

“100 per cent the right call not to sign Jesse Lingard on a free transfer,” Wilkin told Football League World.

“He’s not played English football in a long time, he doesn’t really fit what McKenna would want from a number 10.

“He would’ve probably been on an extortionate amount of wages, and you’ve seen with players like Dele Alli and some of the others who have gone away and played football in different climates that the appetite isn’t really there.

“He had that good spell at West Ham, but then nothing really clicked.

“He’s not got a great injury record, so it’s totally understandable why we turned him down.”

Lingard returned to Man United in 2021 after his loan spell at West Ham, but he struggled for game time and made just 16 more appearances for the club.

The 33-year-old signed for Nottingham Forest in 2022, but failed to make much of an impact in his sole year at the City Ground.

This led to him joining Seoul FC, and it is now expected that he will make the move to Brazilian football.

Meanwhile, Ipswich are fourth in the Championship table and will face a trip to Wrexham on 21 February in a 3pm kick-off.

Jesse Lingard deal isn’t needed at Ipswich

Lingard and McKenna know each other well from their time together at Man United, but that doesn’t mean he would’ve been a good addition to the squad.

It’s unclear whether the 33-year-old has what it takes to compete at a Championship level anymore after two years away from English football.

He also would’ve been a difficult tactical fit for the team, and it’s unlikely he’d have been suited to how Ipswich are set up under McKenna.