West Ham United: Danny Ings headed for January exit depending on next few four weeks
Danny Ings could be heading for a January exit from West Ham depending on what happens over the next four weeks, according to Paul Brown.
Speaking to GiveMeSport on Friday (1 December), the former Daily Star journalist said the 31-year-old’s expected move is “up in the air” after the injuries to Michail Antonio and Jarrod Bowen.
But if things haven’t gone well for the Englishman by Christmas, he believes the forward could still leave the Hammers as this period is his “chance to show that he can do something” for the club this season.
“I think until the injuries to Antonio and Bowen it looked like Ings would probably be leaving West Ham in January,” said Brown. “I think that’s now up in the air. Until that point, Ings wasn’t really getting a look in.
“I think that at the stage of his career that he’s at, he wants to play more minutes than he was getting. He’s going to get a few more games now to try and show that he’s got a future at West Ham. I think we’ll know whether he does or not over the next four weeks or so really.
“From both party’s perspective, if it hasn’t gone well for him by Christmas, and they start to get some players back, it might still be that Ings leaves. This is his chance to show that he can still do something for the club this season.”
Do something
It’s been an absolutely miserable time for Ings since he made the move to West Ham from Aston Villa in the January transfer window.
The forward has scored just three goals during that time, none of which have come in his 14 appearances for the Hammers this season.
This period is the best chance he is ever going to get with the Irons to prove that he does have something to offer and is worth keeping, with Antonio and Bowen both suffering from injuries.
He is currently jostling with youngster Divin Mubama for a spot in the starting lineup, though, so it isn’t a certainty that he will get the nod against Crystal Palace on Sunday (3 December).
It feels pretty inevitable that, once the attacking players do return to full fitness, Ings will be moved on unless he manages to find some kind of form over the next few weeks.
In other West Ham news, a BBC journalist has detailed what type of player the Hammers need to sign in January.