Danny Ings convinced by Aston Villa direction and ready for 'good times' (original) (raw)

Danny Ings says it’s clear the direction Aston Villa is moving in and believes the club can enjoy “good times” in the future.

The new signing arrived just hours before Jack Grealish’s £100m move to Manchester City was confirmed.

Ings, 29, admitted the transfer, for an undisclosed fee, happened at breakneck speed.

It was also a deal which came out of the blue, with the three-cap England man confessing that it was difficult to keep the news secret from his nearest and dearest.

While Grealish’s move was hitting the headlines, Villa were working hard on Ings’ move from Southampton. And it certainly caught out the media, who were totally in the dark.

Ings has penned a three-year deal and he sat down with VillaTV at Bodymoor Heath for his first interview.

“The club itself is a huge club, as everybody knows, you can see the direction that the owners and everyone wants to take the club,” he said.

“It’s a huge club with a huge reputation and huge expectation from the fans.

“But it was a challenge I couldn’t really shy away from and a challenge that I’m looking forward to.”It is a tough challenge, a club like this should be competing for Europe with its history and everything else.

Ings delighted with fans’ response

“Hopefully I can play my part in achieving that but there’s definitely a lot of good times to look forward to for this football club.”

Asked about the positive reception he’s received from Villa fans on social media, he added: “It means a lot.

“Everywhere I’ve been in my career, one of the biggest things for me is to get that bond with the fans as quick as possible and I’ve managed to do that at every other club that I’ve been at, and this is no different.

“I’m really, really looking forward to running out in front of them at Villa Park and showing them what I can do.

“It’s a great stadium, great fans, as I said before, great history. And I think all together with myself and the other signings, and the great squad that’s already here, I’m sure we can achieve great things.”