Aston Villa manager Dean Smith wants his players to be wary of the threat posed by Southampton striker Danny Ings.
The Englishman is in fine goalscoring form so far this season, finding the back of the net 15 times in the Premier League (Transfermarkt).
Smith has praised the striker and wants his team to keep him quiet when the sides meet on Saturday.
As quoted on Villa’s official website, Smith said:
The quality of his [Danny Ings] finishing has been outstanding.
If our defenders play well, we keep him quiet, they are all capable but they have to concentrate and focus for 90 minutes.
READ ASTON VILLA VERDICT
Villa know all about Ings’ finishing ability as he netted twice in the reverse fixture at Villa Park earlier this season during his side’s 3-1 victory.
The return of Tyrone Mings could help Villa handle Ings more effectively, as their record without the English defender is poor – conceding 11 times in the five matches that he has been absent in.
With Nathan Redmond ruled out of the match, the weight of scoring for the Saints appears to be firmly on Ings’ shoulders, so we believe that if Villa can manage to stifle his threat, then they could have a greater chance of winning the match.
However, Ralph Hasenhuttl likes to set his team up with two strikers so the Villa defenders may have to contend with a strike partner, which is why we agree with Smith’s comment that the defenders will need to be concentrated for the entire match.
