Jesse Lingard's endured his fair share of critics since breaking into the Manchester United first team. Despite Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Gareth Southgate rarely fearful of placing the attacking midfielder in their respective starting XIs, there has been a constant debate over whether the 25-year-old truly has the quality to perform consistently at that level.

Even amid these accusations though, Lingard has always proved capable of rising to the occasion.

Including the Community Shield, he's scored in three cup finals for the Red Devils, and his entire United career to date has produced nine game-winning goals - more than a third of all his 24 strikes for the Old Trafford outfit.

And that has shone through during the recent international break too, with Lingard producing telling moments against both the Netherlands and Italy.

It was his strike that proved to be decisive as England beat Oranje 1-0 at the Amsterdam Arena, while he slotted through a cute pass into the path of Jamie Vardy who rifled home in the 1-1 draw with Italy on Tuesday night.

Add to that the 10-cap international's undoubted industry and positional versatility, and it quickly becomes easier to understand why so many managers have favoured Lingard - including Southgate who will be more than aware of how the 25-year-old's ability to produce match-winning moments could be the difference between a positive and negative World Cup campaign for the Three Lions.

Indeed, those two performances appear to have pencilled Lingard into the starting XI for the World Cup, possibly coming at the expense of Dele Alli who sat out the 1-1 draw with Italy, suggesting he's not such a prominent figure in Southgate's plans.

So, England fans, do you now see Lingard as a better option than Alli, who Transfermarkt value at £72million? Let us know by voting below...

[ad_pod ]