NEARLY MAIN MAN TO MAN

Lingard flying after starting season on the fringes... and Jose’s not surprised

JESSE LINGARD has emerged as one of Manchester United’s most influential players – after starting this term as a fringe player.

Lingard had to wait until October for his first Premier League start of the season.

But he has since flourished, scoring seven goals in his last nine appearances. Forget about Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Juan Mata starring in United’s No.10 role.

Warrington-born Lingard has been the most effective there with his energy, industry, goal threat and assists.

The 25-year-old capped a fine display with a goal in United’s 2-0 win at Everton on New Year’s Day, celebrating with Paul Pogba (above).

And Jose Mourinho praised him for making the leap from young talent to become a consistently effective player at Old Trafford.

“These boys, they jump or they don’t jump,” said Mourinho (right). “One thing is to be a young talent, another is to be a very good player. Some players are not capable of that jump. “From great potential, young players, they go to normal players. I think Jesse is giving that jump. He is being more consistent. He is being more adaptable. “He understands better the game, the different spaces, different positions. He is going in a good direction.” With 10 goals already this term in all competitions, Lingard could easily double that tally – although he is keeping his target to himself. He said: “I’ve still got a target in mind, it’s a secret for now.

“But I’m working towards it and I’ll keep working hard to help the team.

“I just want to assist and score goals to help the team. That’s my aim.

“We’ve had a lot of games but we’ve had the spirit to get through the matches. It’s good to start the new year with a win and the travelling fans were great for us again.”