Everton interest in Jesse Lingard shows Farhad Moshiri and club haven’t learnt from errors
Everton have entered the race to sign free agent Jesse Lingard this summer, in further proof that Farhad Moshiri has learnt nothing since being in charge.
Reports emerged on Friday morning [July 1] that the club have held talks with the 29-year-old England international about a move to Goodison Park, after the £60m sale of Richarlison to Tottenham was confirmed.
While there is a talent there quite clearly who is ready to try and prove himself once again, it’s a sign that despite recent struggles on the pitch and poor moves in the transfer market they’ve not learnt from their mistakes.
Lingard has barely played football over the last two seasons. He made three appearances in total during the 2020/21 season before his loan to West Ham, where he showed brilliant form and looked set to kick on.
Then he instead opted to return to Old Trafford and managed to muster up just 22 appearances in all competitions during the 2021/22 season, but only 14 were in the Premier League with just two coming from the starting line-up.
It’s now claimed that he’s looking for a hefty payday after leaving on a free transfer, which shows his motivations aren’t necessarily on the pitch and he’s hardly a direct replacement for Richarlison either.
Lingard’s best performances have come as a number ten, playing behind the striker and linking the midfield with the attack while arriving late to finish chances or running beyond the defence.
The Brazilian though was far more direct and preferred to play from the left if not as the central number nine, so more changes would be needed.
Add that to the fact that at his age, he may only have a couple of years at a good level but he will be sitting on high wages and there will be little-to-no re-sale value for him when it comes time to look at his situation.
Everton also already have a very similar player and character at the club in Dele Alli, who is younger, already integrated into the squad and already a fairly sizeable gamble.
Why not put faith into that deal and give him a chance to really shine? Dele started just one game after joining in January and was never really given a fair crack of the whip.
But in his career he has shown an ability to hit a higher level than Lingard ever has, and it seems totally backwards to try and bring in Lingard when you already have Dele in your squad.
Lingard is a big name that will bring bright lights and plenty of attention to Goodison, but it’s not a deal that bolsters the squad greatly or improves it. In fact, it arguably does nothing at all for the team.
Should Everton continue to pursue this deal, it will further prove that the owners and people who run the club simply have no clue what they’re doing and this protracted takeover couldn’t come any sooner.