JESSE LINGARD has revealed that he cried during his emotional Manchester United exit.
The former England star, 32, left his boyhood club in 2022 having joined at the age of seven.
Lingard played 232 times for the Red Devils and scored the winner in the 2016 FA Cup final.
Having excelled on loan at West Ham during the second half of the 2020-21 season, the attacking midfielder returned to Old Trafford hoping to breathe new life into his United career.
But following just two Premier League starts upon his return, Lingard knew it was time to leave at the end of the following season.
Recounting his Man Utd departure while speaking to the Independent, Lingard said: “I was really dialled in and locked in at that time. The way I played, when you come back to your home club, you’re expecting to play.
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“Obviously, that didn’t happen. You get frustrated.
“My application in training each day was always 100 per cent, you know… But, you come to a certain time where you need to leave.
“The last day, I was crying on the way home… to leave was obviously emotional but it was what I needed to do.”
Rather than return to West Ham, Lingard moved to then-Prem new boys Nottingham Forest.
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His stay at the City Ground would last just one year and 20 appearances.
After being released by Forest, Lingard spent eight months without a club.
He then signed for South Korean side FC Seoul, and was subsequently labelled the “most important signing” in the K League’s history.
Following a difficult start to life in Asia, Lingard eventually settled into it, becoming a vital player for his new team.
He was appointed club captain after recovering from a knee injury last season, going on to score six times as FC Seoul qualified for the Asian Champions League.
Lingard played the full 90 minutes as FC Seoul lost 2-0 to Jeju United in their season opener on Saturday.
Last week, Lingard hit back at an unfounded accusation from an online troll that he, Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba “destroyed Man Utd’s culture”.
He responded: “Waiting for explanation????????”
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Many fans replied in support of Lingard and Co, with one fan saying: “You made us play well which some dumb b******* that ‘support’ this club don’t like because you dance and have fun.”
Lingard said back: “Lool we was just enjoying our life of we played for biggest club in the world of course we made mistakes and we learn but we gonna have fun and smile and dance.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
