Jesse Lingard has given a tell-all interview on Stephen Bartlett’s Diary Of A CEO podcast, discussing his struggles with depression, alcohol, falling out of favour at Manchester United and more.
Speaking on the popular podcast series earlier this week, the former United academy player opened up about how the final days at his boyhood club transpired, shedding light not only on his own personal struggles but decisions made in the background by higher-ups which only hampered things even further.
Lingard spent 22 years a the club and broke into the first team in the 2015/16 season under Louis van Gaal, scoring winning goals in both the FA Cup final and Community Shield and going on to become a trusted first-team regular under multiple managers.
However, the Warrington-born midfielder fell out of the squad in 2019 and only managed four starts in 22 appearances during his final season under Ole Gunnar Solskjær and interim coach Ralf Rangnick. As he explained to Bartlett, there was a lot more than just a lack of game time going on behind the scenes.
Jesse Lingard reveals the problem with Man U today and why he moved to Nottingham Forrest@JesseLingard is no stranger to extreme pressure, but what do you do when it all gets too much and you’ve got the eyes of the nation on you?
One of the first things he covered in the lengthy and extremely honest discussion was how things turned so sour at United that he started to use drinking and regular ‘nightcaps’ as a way to “try and take the pain away”.
Not only did he stop getting game-time at Old Trafford but despite looking like a rejuvenated and crucially happy figure while spending half a season out on loan at West Ham in 2021 — bagging nine goals and five assists in 19 games — he also had a transfer blocked by the club in January 2022.
As was reported at the time, despite United deciding to keep him as a squad player, newly bought Newcastle were also reportedly in for the 30-year-old following his resurgent spell in London but the board ultimately decided to block the move.
It was later reported that Jesse asked for days off which he denied publicly at the time and went on to reiterate to Bartlett that it was a fabrication by then-newly appointed football director, John Murtough, and made public by Rangnick. Always two sides to every story.
To make matters worse, it’s not like anyone could begrudge Lingard for requesting time off even if he did; on top of the horrific levels of abuse he was receiving from his own club’s fans, he was also struggling with numerous personal issues.
As well as his grandfather battling prostate cancer (a figure who has always played a key role in his life), he was also having to deal with his mother’s struggles with depression, which became so severe that she was admitted to hospital in 2019, leaving Jesse to look after younger siblings Jasper and Daisy-Boo.
“The depression was so bad she couldn’t really cope anymore and she needed to go away and get help,” he told Bartlett. “My little sister who was 11 at the time, and my little brother who was 15, for me, I was still going through my own things as well. So I wasn’t really the big brother they wanted at the time.”
He confessed, “I just wasn’t there mentally” and noted that he receive some support from Solskjær during the difficult period. Despite having wanted to get back out there and play football for so long, he said he suddenly “didn’t want to be on the pitch” anymore and needed a break from the spotlight.
Reminder for those of you that think it’s ok to abuse footballers just because they earn millions and you pay to watch them kick a ball around every week that footballers are human.
It’s deeply saddening to hear that the faithful United servant and England international was subjected to such poor treatment by fans from his own club while all this was going on. More importantly, it’s an important reminder that abuse of any kind, online or otherwise, is simply not on.
Now thankfully enjoying his football again at Nottingham Forest, Lingard later went on to try and explain the various issues surrounding his former club. Putting it quite simply, he said that they are “so far behind on everything”, whether it be the training facilities, the recruitment or even the social media.
Many have noted that these comments echo the complaints made by Cristiano Ronaldo in his no-holds-barred interview shortly before he was released from the club too, though admittedly, we’re sure most Reds would agree — it was more the way he went about it.
You can watch Jesse Lingard’s full interview on The Diary Of A CEO podcast down below:
Featured Image — Diary Of A CEO (via YouTube)/Jesse Lingard (via Instagram)
Sport
Streamer AngryGinge ‘arrested and banned’ from Silvestone at the British GP
Danny Jones
Popular Manc influencer, ‘AngryGinge’, was arrested, fined and ultimately banned from Silverstone at this year’s British GP.
The Salford-born Twitch streamer, YouTuber and social media personality (real name Morgan Burtwhistle) was detained at the circuit after being arrested on suspicion of criminal damage.
Ginge recently starred in Soccer Aid 2025 and is a well-known face both on the internet and in the sporting world, regularly working in and around football, and is an avid Manchester United – even featuring in the club’s third kit launch video last year.
The 23-year-old and two other fellow streamers, ‘Chazza’ and ‘Samham’, were accused of criminal damage after sitting in an F1 car whilst recording around the Silverstone complex.
AngryGinge returned to streaming after being detained by police for 15 hours
The streamer and several friends were arrested for climbing into a display F1 car at the British Grand Prix pic.twitter.com/WDSYb6MVtj
“On Friday, July 4, NP received a report that a classic Formula 1 car on display at Silverstone Circuit during the British Grand Prix event had sustained several thousands of pounds worth of damage, which was alleged to have been caused by someone accessing the display stand and climbing into the vehicle.
“Officers carried out initial inquiries, and suspects were identified. Three men, aged 23, 25 and 27, were arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage to a vehicle and taken into police custody.
“Following a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the incident, all three men were released with no further action.”
Burtwhistle went into more detail on the incident on socials, explaining that the trio were taken away in handcuffs and “locked up” for several hours – 15 hours, according to SamHam (Samuel Imie).
All three individuals deny causing any damage to the racecar, even despite users sharing clips from the livestream footage captured for the Red Bull online Content on the day that many argue incriminates them, or at least sounds like it – we’ll let you watch and decide for yourselves.
Ginge himself went on to detail that ridculousness of the situation, explaining how he was effectively detained for watching someone else climb into the vehicle.
He’ll be dining out in this one for some time, you can be sure of that.
He’s literally a brands dream isn’t he 😂 so quick and smart with it
Featured Images — Soccer Aid/angryginge13 (screenshot via Twitch)/Samham (via X)
Sport
Boxing legend Ricky Hatton is coming out of retirement after more than a decade
Danny Jones
Mancunian and British boxing legend Ricky Hatton MBE is coming out of retirement after more than a decade for his first competitive fight in 13 long years.
This is sure to be one to watch.
The Stockport-born and Hattersley-raised fighter first retired back in 2011, but did flirt with a comeback a year later in what turned out to be a one-off fight and defeat to 35-year-old Ukrainian welterweight, Vyacheslav Senchenko.
‘Hitman’ Hatton also got back in the ring for an exhibition match against Marco Antonio Barrera in 2022, enduring eight two-minute rounds after a decade away from fighting, but now he’ll be undertaking an official fight over in the United Arab Emirates.
Lacing up his gloves at 46 years old, Hatton will be facing fellow veteran Eisa Al Dah (same age), who was the first professional boxer in the UAE.
The ‘Pride of Hyde’ may have been out of the competitive sporting sphere for a while, but he’s still remained an active figure in the boxing world.
In addition to training his son, Campbell, who has followed in his father’s fighting footsteps, Hatton has continued to coach other young boxing talents from his gym in Tameside, including John Hedges and Chloe Watson.
Campbell, 24, has won 14 of his 16 fights, losing just twice since he began in 2021.
Meanwhile, his dad – who still boasts a record of 45 victories from 48 matches, 32 of which were by knockout – will be once again focusing on getting himself back in fighting shape for the Dubai bout.
The local athlete has done plenty to dispel the old jabs of ‘Ricky Fatton’ in recent times, mind you, having taken his talents as a once-promising young footballer to play in the Manchester Remembers charity match, as well as the aforementioned Barrera exhibition.
Set for this winter, Ricky Hatton will face fellow veteran Eisa Al Dah in a middleweight contest on Friday, 2 December, telling national media via video call in the recent press conference that confirmed he would be coming out of retirement: “What you’re trying to do there for boxing in Dubai is fantastic.”
Meanwhile, Al Dah added: “It will be a true fight, true action. And I will do my best, because everybody in the UAE and the Gulf, they will watch this fight. The place will be sold out, and it will be watched around the world.”
Will those Haymakers still hit like they used to? Well shall see before the end of the year.
Danny Jones -
20th January 2023 
