Goalscoring has long been a problem for West Ham United, with a consistent failure to sign a high-class centre-forward fit something of a problem for many years.

Jarrod Bowen has been in exceptional form this season and after scoring a hat-trick against Brentford at the start of March, David Moyes remarked that he could become the first Hammers player to reach 20 Premier League goals in a campaign. With nine games left to play, he would need six goals to achieve this feat.

Mohammed Kudus is also a sublime player and Michail Antonio thrives as the grizzled veteran dominating defenders with sheer power and deceptive movements.

The recent past, however, looks at high-profile moves for centre-forwards such as Gianluca Scamacca and Sebastien Haller and concludes that work still must be done to identify and acquire the best strikers to lead the line.

Danny Ings, Premier League-proven and innately effective in front of goal, was supposed to be that player, but the three-cap England international has failed to reach his former levels of success.

Why Danny Ings has struggled at West Ham

During the most fruitful period of his itinerant Premier League career, Ings plundered 46 goals and ten assists from 100 fixtures with Southampton, proving to be one of the Premier League's finest marksmen and being heralded as a "goal machine" by journalist Joe Prince-Wright.

Ings kept defenders on their feet, blessed with a strange, twisting sprinting style that sporting performance analyst Jonas Dodoo described as a "corkscrew action", allowing his body mechanics to lean into faster bursts of acceleration, effectively meaning he could weave round backlines and wreak havoc with his clinical shot-taking.

He left the south coast for Aston Villa but didn't spend much time with the Midlands side, transferring again to West Ham for £15m in January 2023, with the 31-year-old seemingly offering the steady goal flow that Moyes' side, hampered by the injury and absence of form to Scamacca, desperately needed.

Enduring one of the least potent spells of his professional career, Ings has only scored four goals from 46 appearances for West Ham, with his recent point-salvaging goal against Burnley in the Premier League - a good finish, mind - the striker's only strike of the season.

But why has this happened? While he didn't settle at Villa, Ings still posted six Premier League goals from nine starts for the club in the first half of the 2022/23 campaign.

Moreover, he ranks among the top 20% of forwards across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for shot-creating actions, the top 25% for assists, the top 24% for successful take-ons, the top 12% for tackles, the top 10% for interceptions and the top 20% for clearances per 90.

He's not a dud, but The Athletic's Roshane Thomas has highlighted just why the £125k-per-week ace is flattering to deceive in east London, musing over stylistic issues within Moyes' tactical set-up.

“I don't think this system works for Danny Ings. He's often too isolated up front. Hasn't quite clicked barring his two goals against Nottingham Forest. Antonio has great work rate so he has no issues playing as a lone striker. But Ings has struggled in that role.”

Given Ings' high salary, it might be wise for West Ham to send him packing in the summer, and given the chequered track record with signing talented frontmen across recent years, Moyes may well turn to the academy, finding a prospect in Callum Marshall who would send Ings packing.

Why Callum Marshall could replace Danny Ings

While Divin Mubama is probably the highest-profile West Ham youngster right now, Marshall might just be the cream of the crop, with the 19-year-old Northern Irishman earning a loan move to West Bromwich Albion in January after some mesmerising efforts for the U21s, also penning a long-term contract with the Irons.

Indeed, Marshall plundered a ridiculous return of 16 goals and three assists from just ten appearances in the Premier League 2 this term, leading to praise from Thomas for his "brilliant form."

Admittedly, he's only featured three times for the promotion-chasing Baggies so far and has won just 33% of his ground duels, as per Sofascore, which perhaps illuminates the growth and development in regard to physicality that is still needed.

The Championship is tough, physical, unrelenting, but Marshall certainly has the trappings of a high-level goalscorer in the future and West Ham have moved diligently and prudently to secure him on a long-term deal and provide him with some invaluable experience at this maiden stage of his career.

U23 scout and reporter Antonio Mango has gushed over the "insane" attacking qualities at Marshall's disposal, and it does seem to be just a matter of time before he blooms into a centre-forward fit to lead the line at the London Stadium.

As he continues to absorb important lessons at the Hawthorns, cutting his teeth with West Brom, then he might just return to the capital with the confidence and level-up in his development to succeed in the Premier League.

Given Bowen's goalscoring prowess and Antonio's continuing success as a rock-solid presence in the final third, Ings isn't really needed, and if Marshall is provided with the platform to compete under Moyes' wing, he might just add the prolific dimension that Ings simply isn't offering.