Jesse Lingard Signs For Nottingham Forest And Becomes Club's Highest-Paid Player Ever

Jesse Lingard has signed for Premier League newbies Nottingham Forest on a record-breaking one-year deal.

The 29-year-old joined Forest on a free transfer on Thursday after his previous contract with Manchester United had expired last month.

Although Forest did not pay a transfer fee for Lingard, the deal is expected to cost the club around £10 million in wages over the next 12 months.

Lingard will earn close to £200,000 per week at the City Ground, according to The Guardian, making him the highest-paid player in Forest's 157-year history.

It is claimed that West Ham United had also been keen to sign Lingard but were unwilling to match Forest's offer.

Lingard announced his move to Forest in a video posted on Twitter.

Wearing a Forest scarf in the video, Lingard stares down the lens of a camera and says: "Done deal, baby. Let's go!"

In the caption of the tweet, Lingard added: "Ready for my new chapter".

Jesse Lingard pictured wearing a Nottingham Forest scarf in his announcement video

Twitter/@JesseLingard

Lingard had been a United player for more than two decades, having joined the club's academy setup as a child.

He appeared in over 200 games for the Red Devils, but has also played for Leicester, Birmingham, Brighton, Derby and West Ham during loan spells.

Lingard will be hoping that regular Premier League game time with Forest can provide him with a platform to win back his place in Gareth Southgate's England squad.

He has been capped 32 times by the Three Lions and featured in six games at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Lingard scored twice in a 4-0 win over Andorra last September but has not been involved in England's last nine matches.