FORMER Burnley striker Robbie Blake has urged Danny Ings to snub interest from abroad and stay in the Premier League.

The 22-year-old is out of contract in the summer and this weekend flew to Spain to talk to officials from Real Sociedad, with David Moyes keen to secure his services in the summer for the Basque Country club.

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Such a move would not go down well at Turf Moor, with Fifa compensation rules meaning they would be due only around £200,000 if he did sign a pre-contract agreement with La Real.

But a host of Premier League clubs are also interested in signing the England Under-21 striker, and a move to a domestic rival would see the fee either agreed by the clubs or set by a tribunal, and the Clarets would be expected to get in excess of £3 million for their star man.

If he is capped by England before the summer they could push for a record tribunal fee, usurping the £6.5 million Chelsea were told to pay Manchester City for Daniel Sturridge.

Liverpool are understood to be leading the list of Premier League clubs casting admiring glances the way of Burnley’s top scorer, and Blake, who played for the Clarets in the Premier League five years ago, believes he should stay in England.

“Danny Ings was on fire last season in the Championship and people were wondering whether he could do it in the Premier League,” he told talkSPORT.

“He’s proved that he is a top-class player at this level and he scores all sorts of goals.”

Blake, who made over 280 Burnley appearances in two spells with the club, said a move to La Liga would not develop Ings’ career in the way signing for a top Premier League side would.

“It would be a shame if he did go to Real Sociedad in my opinion because it wouldn’t further his career,” he said.

“He needs to move on and go to a top team in the Premier League this summer, a club like Liverpool or Tottenham.”

Ings has nine Premier League goals for Burnley so far this season, and Clarets chief Sean Dyche described his performance at Old Trafford last Wednesday as ‘sensational’.

Dyche has backed his player for an England call-up and on Sunday he said he would be ‘very surprised’ if he chose to move to Spain rather than staying in the Premier League.