Jesse Lingard can still sign for West Ham despite the club releasing their final Premier League squad this week.
England star Lingard has been without a club since the end of last season after the end of his one-year deal with Nottingham Forest.
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The midfielder will hope to revive his career for a second time in east London following his brilliant first stint at the Hammers.
The former Manchester United star spent time on loan at the London Stadium during the 2020/21 campaign and was a revelation, scoring nine goals and contributing six assists in 16 appearances.
West Ham boss David Moyes confirmed to talkSPORT that Lingard has been training at the Irons since leaving Forest.
But the Hammers have already submitted their final Premier League squad for the season so how can they still sign him?
How can West Ham still sign Jesse Lingard?
West Ham announced a 24-man squad for the first half of the Premier League season on Thursday, September 14.
But crucially, that leaves them one below the 25-man cap for over 21-year-old players by Premier League regulations.
And that means that West Ham are free to sign Lingard to a contract whenever they choose.
The club said: “Clubs who have not filled all 25 places may sign and register free agents who are without a club at any time, subject to Premier League approval.”
Moyes has recently spoken to talkSPORT about the possibility of Lingard rejoining West Ham on a permanent deal.
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Speaking on The Sports Breakfast show with Ally McCoist and Andy Townsend, Moyes said: “Jesse has trained with us for three weeks and he’s improved greatly from when he first came in.
“He’s in really good condition – much better condition than he was when he first came in.
“I have to say, when Jesse joined us two years ago I think he scored nine goals in 15 games and was probably the difference between us getting into Europe for the first time.
“I want to give him every opportunity to get himself back in condition and see how he does.
“So there’s no real update on it at the moment, just to say that he’s back and getting much closer to the levels of fitness where you’d hope he would be.”
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