West Ham United manager David Moyes is open to the prospect of signing Jesse Lingard permanently after he scored a match-winning brace on his debut.
The midfielder had fallen dramatically out of favour at Manchester United under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, rarely making the matchday squad.
In fact, Lingard hadn’t made a single appearance in the Premier League all season until a typically energetic showing in the 3-1 victory over Aston Villa on Wednesday night.
He lasted the full 90 minutes before being replaced by Jarrod Bowen in injury time, with the result already secure thanks to his two goals.
When asked about Lingard’s contribution, and the possibility of making his loan move permanent, Moyes remained coy.
"We won't get carried away with one game but we are really pleased for Jesse and he did a great job for us," said Moyes.
"The situation here is that Jesse has a good chance to look at West Ham and see what he thinks of us and to see if he likes it.
"And we are going to have a good chance to look at Jesse, as are the supporters, and we will be able to decide what we think in five or six months' time."
Even if it’s only on a temporary basis, the move has already had the desired effect for Lingard, who was looking to reinvigorate his career after a testing spell on the sidelines at his boyhood club.
His international prospects will also have received a timely boost, with England Gareth Southgate present at Villa Park to witness his performance.
Lingard has form for impressive debuts, having previously scored all four goals in Birmingham City’s 4-1 win against Sheffield Wednesday while on loan at the club in 2013.
