The Manchester United and England midfielder would welcome the opportunity to turn out alongside Brazilian and Spanish legends
Jesse Lingard has named Barcelona legends Ronaldinho and Andres Iniesta as his dream team-mates and selected current Manchester United colleague Cristiano Ronaldo as the man he would most like to trade lives with for a day.
The England international has lined up alongside plenty of top talent for club and country down the years, while also taking on some of the finest footballers that the global game has to offer.
He never got to face two players that he holds in the highest regard, though, with Brazilian and Spanish World Cup winners that boast strong ties to Camp Nou having moved on by the time Lingard lined up against the Blaugrana in 2019.
What has been said?
Asked by England Football to pick out his dream team-mates, Lingard said: “If I could play alongside one player from the history of world football, it would be… Ronaldinho. And Iniesta.
“They were my two growing up that I used to watch quite frequently. Ronaldinho was an unbelievable player and it was the same with Iniesta.
“I always used to watch the way Iniesta carried the ball and the way he got into little pockets of space. So I would have to say those two, 100 per cent.”
Who else does Lingard admire?
While being a big fan of superstars from the past, Lingard also admires iconic figures in the present.
One of those is now a club colleague at United, with five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo even capturing the imagination of those that he shares a dressing room with.
Quizzed on who he would most like to be for a day, Lingard said: “Ronaldo. Cristiano.
“I just want to see his day-to-day life. I want to see what he eats, what he drinks, the way he trains. I would love to get an insight into that.”
Lingard and Ronaldo, who have been among the goals for United of late, will be back in Premier League action on Saturday when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side look to extend their unbeaten start to the 2021-22 campaign in a home date with Aston Villa.