Journalist claims Aston Villa have no "real concerns" over future of "frustrated" Smith signing

Journalist Pete O’Rourke does not think Aston Villa will be worried about Danny Ings wanting to leave the club this summer, despite his lack of opportunities recently.

Ings only arrived at Villa Park last summer in a £25m move from Southampton, but his maiden campaign at the Midlands club has not been a particularly successful one.

The 29-year-old went straight into the side’s starting line-up under Dean Smith, and scored in his first two matches against Watford and Newcastle.

Goals have been hard to come by since then, though. He has managed just two further strikes in his last 15 league appearances, with only one of those coming since the turn of the year.

This has led to current Villa boss Steven Gerrard dropping him to the bench for the team’s last three games.

Transfer insider Dean Jones recently suggested that Ings could move away from the Premier League outfit at the end of the season if he continues to struggle for minutes on the pitch.

O’Rourke sees things differently, though.

He understands that Ings may be annoyed at not being picked, but he has backed the England international to bounce back in the near future when he gets the chance to play from the start again.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, O’Rourke said: “I don’t think there’s any real concerns about Danny Ings, who might be frustrated with his lack of first-team football but I’m sure you’ll see a hungry Danny Ings once he does get the chance again in the starting line-up.”

Across the course of the campaign, Ings has been a regular starter for the Villans, so it may be a little premature to start speculating about his future at this stage.

However, he has fallen out of favour over the past few weeks, with Gerrard opting to use Ollie Watkins to fill the lone