Former England international midfielder Rob Lee has been discussing Southampton centre-forward Danny Ings and the possibility that he could be the successor to Jamie Vardy at Leicester City.
Vardy has undoubtedly been a key man for the Foxes since moving to the King Power Stadium for £1.12m back in the summer of 2012. He fired Leicester to Premier League glory back in the 2015/16 campaign, ending that season as the joint-second-highest goalscorer in England’s top-flight, while only three players have scored more Premier League goals than the £14.4m-rated man has scored so far this term.
Ings has arguably played a similarly key role for Southampton over the last year and a half since joining the Saints permanently in the summer of 2019 for £19.98m, as he ended last season as the joint-second-top scorer in England’s top-flight, trailing only Vardy, while he’s currently the Saints’ top league goalscorer once again this term.
With just over a year remaining on his Southampton contract, however, Ings has been linked with a departure from St. Mary’s of late, with Tottenham Hotspur said to be keen on signing him. Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Lee has shared that he believes the Saints man could be the one to replace 34-year-old Vardy at Leicester.
The pundit said: “I think Brendan Rodgers knows that Vardy can’t go on forever, although Jamie probably thinks he can – at the moment, [the way] he’s still going! He will be looking for a replacement for Vardy because that’s what you have to do and yes, Ings can do what Vardy does.”
Should Southampton sell Ings to Leicester?
YES
NO
TIF Thoughts on what Lee had to say about Ings…
Ings is currently 28 years old and the peak age of a striker is said to be around 27 or 28, so that, combined with the fact that he will be in the final year of his contract next season, could, perhaps, convince the Saints to cash in on Ings in the summer, especially if he doesn’t want to sign a contract extension with Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side.
Leicester currently sit in third place on the Premier League table, 10 points above the Saints, so you could argue that a move to the King Power Stadium would be a step up for the striker, and Brendan Rodgers signed him before, during his time as Liverpool boss, so perhaps Lee’s claim that the Foxes could look at Ings isn’t too far-fetched.
There are plenty of signs to suggest that Ings could be considered for this role if Leicester are going to start thinking about life after Vardy, who has got over two years left on his current contract, and it will be interesting to see if the Saints are open to selling Ings to their Premier League rivals before he enters the final year of his deal, and they run the risk of ultimately losing him for free.