IAN WRIGHT has slammed Manchester United for their treatment of Jesse Lingard – but Roy Keane reckons the forward should have quit Old Trafford last summer.
After interim boss Ralf Rangnick revealed Lingard had asked for some time off to ‘clear his mind’, the 28-year-old ace hit back to reject the claims.
Lingard was denied a deadline day move by the club after initially being told he would be able to leave.
West Ham and Newcastle were both linked, and the fact he wasn’t allowed to leave has not sat well with Arsenal legend Wright, who sided with Lingard.
Wright also blasted the fact Rangnick publicly claimed Lingard had requested time off for personal reasons, and fumed that the club had failed in their duty of care.
The Arsenal legend said on ITV: “I can’t understand why they’ve come out and said it. He’s had a pile on from people saying he doesn’t want to play for the club.
“Where is the [duty of care] in that?
“I think it has been very unfair in respects of what he wants to do, what he is trying to do in respect of maybe he wants to leave the club.
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“He wanted to get a loan move, whatever it is, they denied him the loan move and in a World Cup year, somebody who if he does well might get himself back in the World Cup.
“There’s a lot of things that really have kind of gone wrong from both sides if you look at things, because he needs to play.
“Obviously he needs to play and I think he thought he was going to get to go on loan.”
Keane, though, didn’t see it the same way.
The United icon argued that Lingard ‘should have taken’ the chance to leave permanently last summer on the back of his impressive spell at West Ham.
Lingard was promised more game time after starring in East London, but has started ZERO Premier league games this season.
And Keane said, in typically unsympathetic fashion: “He should have gone last summer, end of story.
“He had his chance. He played some games, proved what he is about, went to West Ham and got a run, having not played much football.
“People get bogged down by contract talk. He wants to leave, he wants to leave on a free but you have to play the games.
“He can complain all he wants, it is not ideal between Jesse and the club at the moment.
“Last summer was his opportunity, he should have taken it.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk