Journalist Dean Jones believes that a January exit for Aston Villa’s Danny Ings cannot be ruled out.
The 30-year-old grabbed a brace as the Villans cruised to a 4-0 victory in their first game following Steven Gerrard’s sacking.
Caretaker boss Aaron Danks oversaw the side’s resounding win over Brentford on Sunday.
Unai Emery has since been appointed manager of the West Midlanders and will begin work at the club on November 1st.
Ings had started just five of the club’s 11 Premier League games under Gerrard, and speaking while the Liverpool icon was in charge, Jones mooted a potential winter exit for the striker.
When asked whether the three-cap England international could leave in January, he told GiveMeSport: “It’ll depend on who is the manager of Aston Villa at the time.
“But, if Steven Gerrard was still there, I think Danny Ings would probably be one of the most sought-after players in the January transfer market.
“He’s a player that clearly isn’t fulfilling his potential and he must be frustrated.
“As another team who is looking for a goal boost, he is the sort of player that you’d feel could turn around your season, so it will be really interesting to keep an eye on his situation.”
TIF Thoughts on Ings and Villa…
Will Danny Ings come good for Villa?
Yes
No
Football Insider reported in the summer that Ings was the subject of interest from Brighton & Hove Albion, and prior to Sunday, he was perhaps regretting not taking the chance to return to the south coast.
However, with Emery now waiting to come through the door at Bodymoor Heath, it could well give the £18m-rated frontman a new lease of life.
Ings thrived as Danks switched to a 4-2-3-1 formation last weekend, and considering the incoming manager favoured a similar setup during his only full season at Arsenal, Villa could well operate in that shape for the remainder of the campaign.
The former Southampton talisman is under contract until the end of the 2023/24 season, and considering he has hit double figures in the league three times before – including 22 three years ago – the club do a lot worse than look to make use of his talents.