View: Danny Ings transfer from Aston Villa to West Ham is a risk for all parties involved
Considering Unai Emery’s lack of attacking options, it was surprising to see Aston Villa sell Danny Ings to West Ham earlier in this transfer window.
The 30-year-old secured a move to the London Stadium for a fee of £15million after struggling for consistent game time at Villa Park in the last 18 months. [Sky Sports, January 20]
Ings leaves Villa as their top scorer this campaign with six goals from 18 games, but ultimately, given his age and tendency to blow hot and cold, it was felt like a permanent exit was necessary.
However, letting the striker leave the club this month could well prove an extremely risky move, with Emery currently possessing just three out-and-out attackers in his first-team squad.
Ollie Watkins, the injury-prone Leon Bailey and 19-year-old Jhon Duran make up the Spaniard’s paper-thin attacking ranks, and if the club are unable to add further faces to this trio, they could well be made to pay the price in the latter stages of this season.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, The Athletic’s Dan Bardell thought Villa had sanctioned the striker’s exit because they believed a direct replacement was in the pipeline.
“He’s Aston Villa’s top scorer, and he was a very useful player to have,” he confessed.
“He showed when he saved the game against Wolves from the bench and scored twice against Brighton before the World Cup break when Ollie Watkins was ill that he is a match-winner, and he has won Villa points this season.
“So it is a little bit of a surprise. But from what I’ve heard, Villa thought they had something that was further along, so they let Ings go thinking a forward player was going to come in.
“And for whatever reason at the moment, whether it’s fallen through or it’s been delayed, I don’t know, but it sounds like there was something lined up that they thought was going to be done pretty quickly, so they let Ings go.”
Although Villa haven’t yet signed a requisite replacement for Ings, he was always unlikely to thrive in Emery’s system.
The 30-year-old’s pace has waned ever-so-slightly, and he isn’t as dynamic as his attacking counterpart Watkins. His injury record is also a major concern considering the wages he would have been in on at Villa Park, and his inability to stay fit wouldn’t have helped the stability of the Spaniard’s side.
And although Ings suits the 4-4-2 formation Emery prefers to opt with, the combination of Ings and Watkins has never lived up to expectations and ended up being one of the key reasons for Dean Smith’s sacking in the West Midlands.
Bardell explained: “I do think it’s best for Ings as he doesn’t suit Emery’s long-term vision. He’s 30 years of age, so he’ll want to play as much football as he possibly can.
“I actually think he has swapped Villa’s bench for West Ham’s bench because I don’t think he will start that many games because David Moyes doesn’t play with a two up front, and in my opinion, I don’t see Ings as a lone target man at all.
“The best patches of his career have come in a front two at Burnley and a front two at Southampton.
“I can see why Villa have let him go because of the injuries and his age, but the squad at the moment is so so light and needs some investment this month.“
Premier League goals are a hard currency to buy, though, and you can’t help but feel that Villa allowing Ings to join a direct rival will come back to bite them in the future.
In other Aston Villa news, James Maddison is one to watch for the Villans in their next game.