Sources: Nottingham Forest to part ways with Jesse Lingard after Steve Cooper green light
Nottingham Forest are not willing to offer Jesse Lingard a new contract and will part ways with him at the end of the season, sources have told Football Insider.
The 30-year-old playmaker signed a lucrative one-year offer with Forest after his contract at Old Trafford expired last summer.
But Lingard hasn't lived up to expectations in Steve Cooper's side, failing to score or assist in the Premier League despite making 16 appearances.
Cooper considers the move a failure and has informed the Forest board that it'd be best for all parties if Lingard moved on at the end of the season.
Cooper no longer considers the former England international part of his plans at the City Ground, with Lingard playing just 63 minutes of football in 2023.
The former Red Devil scored and assisted twice in three games in the EFL Cup for Forest, but failed to have a similar impact in the Premier League where they sit just three points above the drop zone.
Football Insider sources revealed on Saturday (11 March) that a fire sale is on the cards at Forest this summer if the side suffer relegation to the Championship.
Releasing Lingard to be a free agent will likely spare up a large part of Forest's wage bill, with talkSPORT reporting his pay to be around £130,000-a-week with bonuses.
Cooper could use the freed-up wages to strengthen his squad further this summer, with our sources revealing that Forest are preparing a £100million spending spree if they survive the drop.