West Ham have held further talks with Jesse Lingard amid interest in the former Manchester United midfielder from Nottingham Forest. Lingard is understood to be close to making a decision on his future and West Ham are hopeful they will reach an agreement with the England international. The 29-year-old, a free agent after leaving United, had an excellent loan at the London Stadium two years ago and David Moyes is determined to sign him. The complication is over Lingard’s wage demands. He has held out for a contract worth £180,000 a week, but West Ham’s reluctance to go to that has allowed other clubs to stay in the race. Everton are also in the running, Leicester, Newcastle and Tottenham are monitoring the situation, and Forest are considering whether to make him an offer. Forest are looking to strengthen after winning promotion to the Premier League and signing Lingard, who has reportedly had interest from Major League Soccer clubs and a team in Saudi Arabia, would increase their attacking options. At the moment West Ham, who remain in talks over a deal to sign the Chelsea striker Armando Broja, appear to be leading the race. Lingard has remained close with many of West Ham’s players and has a good understanding with Moyes, who wants more quality in attacking midfield. West Ham are looking to back Moyes as he aims to build a squad capable of finishing in the top four. The club have made an offer of £30m plus add-ons for Broja, who has told Chelsea that he wants to leave on a permanent basis. The bid has not been accepted by Chelsea and discussions are ongoing. Everton could also bid for Broja, who is close to agreeing personal terms with West Ham. West Ham also submitted a €40m offer for the Sassuolo striker Gianluca Scamacca last week. It is unclear whether they intend to continue their pursuit of Scamacca if Broja joins. Moyes is also trying to add more depth in midfield. West Ham, who have signed Flynn Downes from Swansea, are hopeful they will succeed with a €38m offer for Lille’s Amadou Onana. Rangers sign Liverpool defender Davies Rangers have confirmed the signing of centre-back Ben Davies from Liverpool on a four-year contract. The 26-year-old has completed a reported £4m deal, with the move announced shortly before Rangers’ pre-season game against West Ham at Ibrox. Davies almost signed a pre-contract deal with Celtic 18 months ago before Liverpool swept in to sign him from Preston as they battled an injury crisis. The defender ultimately never played for the Reds and last season went on loan to Sheffield United, where he made 23 appearances. “I am very excited to join Rangers and I am really looking forward to taking this next step in my career,” Davies said. “It’s a huge club with big ambitions and I can’t wait to get started.” “Rangers is a fantastic club, a big club,” the Liverpool manager, Jürgen Klopp said. “Ben belongs on a big stage for sure. European football as well. We wish Ben nothing but the success he deserves and will be following from here as he goes on to make many achievements during the rest of his career.”