DANNY Ings feels he will be better prepared for Premier League action when play resumes next Saturday, after learning to deal with the difficulties and play with a smile once more.

The striker, whose two goals made him the star of the show for England Under-21s at Turf Moor on Thursday, has always admitted he is at his best on the pitch when he is beaming.

A significant shortage of chances this season in comparison to Burnley's promotion winning Championship campaign brought initial frustrations for the Burnley ace, whose season then suffered a false start as a result of a hamstring injury suffered at Crystal Palace in September.

But after returning a month later, scoring his first Premier League goal in the following game against Everton, and going on to play his part in the Clarets' first win of the season against Hull City last weekend, Ings feels ready to show the top flight what he is made of.

“I knew it was going to be a little bit frustrating in the Premier League because the goals and chances aren’t going to come as frequently," said the 22-year-old, whose brace on home soil helped England U21s stretch their winning run to 11 games in Thursday's friendly with Portugal, which finished 3-1.

Ings insists he feels more content now that he has learnt to accept that opportunities will not come as easy as they have done in previous seasons, particularly last term when he top-scored with 26 goals in 45 league and cup games.

"I’m happy again and enjoying my football and learning every day," he said.

“I think I just looked back at last year and all of the other moments that I’ve had for Burnley. It’s been a real rollercoaster for me so I should just go out with a smile on my face every week and enjoy it."

“I’m improving every week and every day on the training ground," added Ings, who described scoring for the Young Lions at Turf Moor as one of the best moments in his career.

“It’s definitely up there.

“I knew it was going to be special, playing in front of the town. It was a great turnout and I thank everyone for coming out on the night. It was fantastic.

“To get two goals as well really caps off a fantastic night.

“Nights like that really shows what hard work can do.

“With my previous bad injuries that was quite a low time in my life but the last few years have been fantastic and I just want to carry that on."

Ings missed big chunks of his first two seasons with Burnley because of two serious knee injuries, but he insists he is only looking forward with both club and country, as the U21s head to France tomorrow ahead of Monday's friendly in Brest, continuing their preparations for the Euro 2015 Championships.

Ings, who now has four goals in six games for Gareth Southgate's side, said: “There’s a lot of competition, there’s a lot of very good strikers, so it’s important that I’m at the top of my game and try to score as many goals as I can.

“Portugal were very strong, especially in possession. They kept the ball extremely well so it’s important that we were patient and got them on the counter attack, and I think with the result it showed that we did that very well.

"It was important that we got the win and the two goals obviously helped.

“It was a really good night all round for me and for the team."

Of the 10,711 Turf Moor crowd Ings added: “They were fantastic. I heard my name from start to finish. It was great to play in front of them and it was great that they came out to watch."