If Sergio Aguero leaves Manchester City this summer, the club have lined up Southampton’s Danny Ings as a potential replacement.
According to Sky Sports, with Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland likely to command a fee in the region of £100million, Ings is viewed as a much cheaper alternative.
As Aguero’s contract runs down amid interest from Barcelona, Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain, it seems that his decade-long stay in English football is coming to an end.
The Argentine striker is Man City’s all-time leading goalscorer and a fan favourite, but he is 32 years old and has struggled with injuries recently.
Pep Guardiola is planning for a future without Aguero, and having assessed all the options available to him, he has identified Ings as someone who could fill the void.
Unlike Erling Haaland, who is coveted by all of the world’s biggest clubs and would consume a huge chunk of their transfer budget, City recognise that they will face much less competition for Ings.
The Southampton man is entering the final year of his contract at St Mary’s and is yet to agree terms on a new deal.
After an injury-marred spell at Liverpool, Ings was in prolific form for the Saints last season, scoring 25 goals in 42 games.
His total of 22 in the Premier League put him level with Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and just one behind Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy, who claimed the Golden Boot.
It was a superb record for a side that spent much of the season battling relegation, before pulling away from trouble to finish 11th.
The prospect of joining Man City would undoubtedly appeal to Ings, who saw his last big move ruined by an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained in Jurgen Klopp’s first training session.
With the occasionally impetuous Gabriel Jesus yet to fully convince Guardiola that he can be clinical in front of goal, Ings would be a reliable alternative.
