Jesse Lingard arrived at West ham with a bang, his two goals on debut against Aston Villa had many Hammers fans convinced he was worth the money no matter what the cost.
Since that evening Lingard has gone on to score two more goals, including the winner against rivals Tottenham and added an assist to his name.
The impact of Lingard's arrival can best be illustrated by how poor in attack West Ham have been in his absence.
The Hammers suffered two 1-0 defeats to Manchester United at Old Trafford, first in the FA Cup and more recently the Premier League game on Sunday.
Sean Whetstone of the West Ham website Claret & Hugh has revealed the true cost of Lingard to the club:
"He’s on £107,000 a week and the extras he gets like £7,000 for being in the Man United squad, he gets appearance fees, he gets a win bonus, a draw bonus.
“Our six-month loan could cost us £4.5m. We’re paying £2.5m in wages… we paid a £1.5m loan fee to Man United and a £500k bonus if we qualify for Europe," said Whetstone.
Lingard's arrival has been such a success at the club that it is no surprise that David Moyes wishes to make his transfer a permanent one in the summer and it is a move the 28-year-old wants to make according to Whetstone.
"He will come to us, mark my words. He’s £15mil. He wants to come to us.”
West Ham do not have an option to buy clause inserted in Lingard's loan agreement, meaning any transfer fee will have to be negotiated with Manchester Untied from scratch.
The 28-year-old is in his prime years but would have little if any resale value to the Hammers so the club would be reluctant to sanction any move that is above the £15-20m mark. Manchester United may be looking for something higher, particularly if Lingard is able to force his way back into Gareth Southgate's England squad.
However, with Lingard's contract due to expire at Old Trafford in 2022 Manchester United will have to be realistic with their valuations of the player or face losing him on a free transfer next summer.
With the money that has been invested in Lingard's short spell at the club anything other than European qualification will be deemed as a failure and most likely lead to the player not wanting to return on a permanent basis next season.
Moyes has ten games left to ensure European qualification and stand any chance of retaining the England international.
