Watch Paparazzi

Footballer Jesse Lingard spotted wearing Patek Philippe

Jesse Lingard's move to Nottingham Forest may have dominated the back pages, but watch collectors had their eyes fixed slightly higher — on his wrist. The English midfielder was recently spotted wearing the Patek Philippe Nautilus Perpetual Calendar ref. 5740G in white gold, one of the rarest and most coveted references in modern watchmaking.

Introduced in 2018 as a spiritual successor to the reference 3712, the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5740G represents a genuine horological achievement. At just 8.42mm thick, it fits a perpetual calendar mechanism — displaying date, day, month, leap year, and moon phase — inside Gerald Genta's legendary horizontally brushed and polished octagonal case measuring 40mm. The movement within is the calibre 240 Q, a micro-rotor automatic of extraordinary thinness, hand-finished to Patek's exacting standards. The slate-grey dial features applied gold indices and blue hands, with the characteristic Nautilus 'waves' providing a subtle textured backdrop to the complex sub-dials.

From a collector's standpoint, the 5740G occupies rarefied territory. Patek Philippe discontinued the reference in 2021, ostensibly to retire the perpetual calendar complication within the Nautilus line, which only intensified demand. At retail, the piece listed for approximately $137,040 — already substantial — but authorised dealer allocations were functionally impossible to secure for most buyers. On the secondary market, examples now regularly trade between $250,000 and $300,000, representing a premium of roughly double the retail price.

Lingard has long demonstrated genuine horological taste beyond the typical footballer flex. His collection includes multiple Patek Philippe references alongside AP Royal Oaks and Richard Mille pieces, suggesting a collector who actively engages with the market rather than simply spending. The 5740G, however, is a different level of statement — this is not a watch you stumble into.

For the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5740G in white gold, current grey-market values sit firmly around the $280,000 mark. With no announced successor specifically replicating this complication combination, the reference is only likely to appreciate further, cementing Lingard's wrist game as genuinely investment-grade.