Kevin Phillips says ‘quality’ Ings can ‘bounce back’

Danny Ings scored 41 goals with nine assists in 91 Premier League games for Southampton (2018 – 2021), so Aston Villa had big expectations for him upon his arrival in August.

The 29-year-old hasn’t lived up to his billing, however, with five goals and five assists in 25 games, so Steven Gerrard has often given Ollie Watkins the nod over him.

Ings scored two goals in his first two league games and had two assists in the three games that followed, but he only scored just once in 17 games after August’s double and had bagged just two goals since October 2021.

The England international has started only nine of Villa’s last 16 games, but Kevin Phillips backs Ings to turn things around. He told Football Insider: “It is hard because when you’re a forward you get judge on scoring goals.

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“When you miss chances it is always highlighted in the Premier League. But Danny Ings has shown in his career that he will score goals if given a consistent run of games. He doesn’t look like he has his match sharpness to me.

“It is far from ideal but the player has quality. If Steven Gerrard plays him for the next seven games he will score, 100 per cent. It is just a matter of time. He never gives up. He always keeps going and has great attitude.

“All strikers live on confidence. His will have dipped a little bit. I expect him to bounce back though.” Ings did score one goal and make two assists in Villa’s 4-0 win over Southampton, but he’s been firing blanks outside of that.

The 29-year-old had six shots in the 4-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur without scoring and has only netted one of his last 14 chances overall. He’s clearly low on confidence, but it remains to be seen if