On Thursday night, Southampton striker Danny Ings scored his 19th Premier League goal of the season in a 1-1 draw at Everton. The goal has kept the former Burnley striker right in the race for the golden boot in the English top-flight.
He must be commended for his efforts this season, as for a chunk of the season, the Saints were poor, even suffering a 9-0 home humiliation against Leicester in October. However, in recent weeks and months even, Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team has improved immensely and Ings looks to be enjoying his football.
In truth, Ings could have had more goals at Goodison, as he also saw an effort well saved by England number one Jordan Pickford.
The 27-year-old is looking as sharp as ever and has fired himself into a race with some illustrious company on the goalscoring charts in the English top-flight.
Currently, Leicester’s Jamie Vardy is top scorer in the Premier League with 22 goals this season, followed by Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on 20 and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah on 19. The trio is accustomed to fighting for the golden boot in recent years, as all three have been highly prolific in recent seasons.
Ings scored just seven goals for the Saints in the top-flight last season. However, the fact that he did not appear in 13 of their league games may have had something to do with the relatively meagre goal tally. They also struggled to score goals as a team in the last campaign. Hasenhuttl has got them playing with confidence and scoring goals.
Ings maybe be an outsider for the golden boot at present. But, on current form, he will feel that he can compete with the other top strikers high on the scoring list.
If the forward continues in his current vein, then he may earn international recognition, which would be a richly deserved honour.