Manchester United’s youth academy is famed for nurturing some of the finest talent to have represented the club down the years.
From David Beckham, to Ryan Giggs, to Marcus Rashford, United have consistently churned out first-team stars who have left their mark on the Theatre of Dreams.
Local lad Jesse Lingard is one of those who made the grade at Old Trafford, playing over 230 times for United over a decade long spell.
However, the former England international has seen his career stall in recent years after leaving United on a free transfer in 2022. After a disastrous year with Nottingham Forest, Lingard is now plying his trade in South Korea for FC Seoul.
The 31-year-old has suffered a turbulent spell in Asia, having picked up a knee injury which kept him out for the best part of two months. Lingard also drew criticism from his new manager for perceived lack of effort upon joining the club, leaving his future in Seoul in doubt.
However, since his return from injury mid-May, Lingard has featured in Seoul’s last seven games and become a mainstay in the side.
So much so that the former United man has been named captain of the K-League outfit, underlining a fine turn around for the player, though this move is likely to come as a shock to United fans with Lingard rarely ever showing the type of attitude or leadership required to wear the captain’s arm band while at Old Trafford.
As reported by Tribal Football, Lingard spoke on his pride of his new role.
“Proud moment for me to captain FC Seoul, it’s amazing to work with this group day in day out. We have to keep this consistency for the rest of the season showing the same desire and mentality we showed in this game our fans quality as usual thank you for the support,” he said.
🚨🇰🇷 Good to see Jesse Lingard named the captain of FC Seoul after a tough start in South Korea. ©️❤️ pic.com/wruK302gM3
— UtdTruthful (@Utdtruthful) June 23, 2024
Lingard has led the side out in the last fixtures, first in a 2-2 draw with Ulsan and more recently in the 3-0 home win against Suwon.
The Englishman is yet to get off the mark for Seoul but has clearly made a huge impact in South Korea.
His arrival was met with huge excitement from the home faithful and Seoul supporters may now get to see the best out of a player who should still have some good miles left on the clock.
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