As the walls started to cave in on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's tenure as Manchester United manager last November, supporters and journalists alike started to pick out names that might benefit from a changing of the guard.
While Donny van de Beek — who will be aiming to rekindle his career under former mentor Erik ten Hag — was a popular choice for many, Jesse Lingard was also mentioned. Following a blistering loan spell at West Ham in the second half of the 2020/21 Premier League campaign, scoring nine goals and grabbing five assists in just 16 appearances, the attacking midfielder returned to Old Trafford with his career at a crossroads.
He was either going to become a key figure in Solskajer's plans, or be allowed to leave United on a permanent deal, with his stock at the highest level it had been at in years. West Ham were desperate to sign him on a permanent basis and it seemed a matter of 'when' rather 'if' he would return to the London Stadium.
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Solskjaer, though, sold him a false promise, insisting that he would be a regular fixture in his plans for the 2021/22 campaign. By the time Solskjaer was sacked on November 21 — less than 24 hours after a humiliating 4-1 defeat to Watford —Lingard had made just seven appearances in league and cup, with all six of his Premier League appearances coming from the substitutes bench.
Despite stepping off the bench to score against Newcastle and West Ham, it was clear that Solskjaer had not stuck to his word; Lingard was back to being a bit-part player, just months after he had lit up the Premier League in extraordinary fashion with West Ham.
United's decision to refuse to cash-in on him in the final summer ahead of him entering the final year of his contract was disastrous. They missed out on a healthy-sized transfer fee and gained nothing. It was a decision that backfired miserably.
Lingard's fortunes didn't improve under Ralf Rangnick, either. He played just 11 times in his disastrous premiership, meaning he left Old Trafford at the end of last season on a free transfer. Less than 12 months ago, United could have easily bagged £20million, perhaps more, for his services after such a productive spell in the capital.
It is a scenario United cannot afford to repeat again, especially when the club needs to try and recoup every penny it possibly can from player sales, to re-invest in new additions. That is why United should already be looking at next summer, at least with half an eye, to see how they can avoid repeating their Lingard error.
United have a plethora of players whose contracts expire at the end of June 2023, so some important decisions need to be made over the coming weeks and months. Most of them, such as David de Gea, Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford, have one-year options that can be triggered, taking them to June 2024 — as do Axel Tuanzebe and Andreas Pereira. Tahith Chong, however, doesn't have that luxury, meaning his deal will expire on June 30, 2023.
The trio all spent last season out on loan, with their experiences proving mixed. Tuanzebe struggled to find much joy at both Aston Villa and Napoli, Pereira experienced an up-and-down time at Flamengo and Chong, despite showing flashes of his brilliance at Birmingham City, saw his number of games reduced by a serious thigh injury.
Already, Pereira — who is wanted by Fulham — and Feyenoord target Chong have suitors, meaning United find themselves in a good position to offload each of them for a transfer fee, opposed to losing them for potentially nothing in a year's time. Just the interest being there is a good start.
Tuanzebe, on the other hand, is yet to find a suitor, although he could be embedded within Ten Hag's plans if he impresses in pre-season. But, on the face of it, at the age of 24, it is unlikely that he has a long-term future at United, just like Pereira and Chong.
Although each of the aforementioned trio's stock is not as high as Lingard's was a year ago, they are unlikely to ever become regular first-teamers at Old Trafford. United should look to offload them while they can.
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