Jesse Lingard feels he is getting back to his best after finally bringing his 10-month goal drought to an end for Manchester United.
Lingard wore the captain’s armband as he led United’s youngsters at Astana in the Europa League, though his well-taken opening goal counted for little as they slipped to a 2-1 defeat on Thursday.
However, with the monkey off his back, the 26-year-old is now setting his sights higher – on silverware at both club and international level.
“There’s always that hunger and fight for positions and obviously it goes down to form and where you’re at club-wise so, for me, it’s about getting back to the Jesse that everyone knows and the Jesse Lingard that I know,” he told reporters.
“Things can affect that on the pitch, off the pitch, but mentality is key, confidence is key and belief is key.
"I’m a player who likes to score goals, make assists and, for me, I need to get back to that, back to my best and I feel I’m slowly but surely getting back there.”
United’s form has been inconsistent under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer this season, contributing to a disappointing league position of ninth – just a point above the bottom half.
With games against Tottenham and Manchester City to follow, United will be looking to Sunday’s clash with Aston Villa as a chance to get some points on the board.
Getty ImagesFor Lingard, cups are what count, and he has more than one in his sights right now.
“For club, my ambition is definitely a trophy,” he added. “We’ve worked so hard last season, this season we started off well.
"A trophy is in our sights and we have to concentrate on winning a trophy, getting that winning feeling by lifting a trophy.
“For England, Euros is a really important competition. It’s in Europe, quite a few games at Wembley, a ground we’re used to, so the ball’s in our court and I feel we can do well in that competition.
“Any competition that Man United are in, we want to win that trophy. The Europa League, we want to win that, the FA Cup, the EFL Cup, we want as many trophies as we can.
"That’s down to everyone’s mentality and we have that winning mentality at United. That’s what we expect.”