Charlie Austin discusses David Sullivan comments, admits pleasure at scoring against West Ham

Follow us on Google Discover

Sullivan claimed last summer that Austin had “no ligaments in his knee”.

Southampton striker Charlie Austin has told the Daily Mail that it felt good to score against West Ham United earlier this season after David Sullivan’s comments about his injury history.

Austin was linked with a move to the Hammers last summer whilst still at QPR but the move never went through as a result of the West Ham’s owners’ reservations over Austin’s fitness.

At the time, Irons co-owner Sullivan suggested that Austin “had no ligaments in his knee”. Austin subsequently scored 10 goals in his final 16 games for QPR before joining Southampton in January.

The 27-year-old has been on fire for the Saints in the opening months of the current campaign, finding the net seven times in his first 10 games.

One of those goals came in the comprehensive 3-0 win over West Ham at the London Stadium, and Austin admitted that it was sweet to score in front of the Hammers co-owner.

Austin told the Daily Mail: “With West Ham, I can laugh about it now, I suppose. I was on my way into training and a mate of mine rang up and said, ‘Have you seen what David Sullivan has said about you?’ I hadn’t, so I looked at it and thought, ‘What is this!’ If I had no ligaments, I wouldn’t be able to walk, would I?

“I was annoyed, to be honest. Look how much it travelled around. It sticks in people’s minds, whether it is true or not. I just felt I had to act. What did it say about QPR if what he was saying was true? What did it say about me and my integrity? I had to make a statement.

“I’d made up my mind not to react [after scoring]. But it wasn’t until after I realised how delighted I was. I know people would have expected me to do something but I didn’t want to stoke the fire again. We played well, I scored. We battered them. The goal put the cherry on the top of the cake.”

Austin clearly took particular delight in netting against West Ham, and with eight goals in 17 games in total for the Saints continuing his excellent career-long goals-to-games ratio, Hammers may wish that they had taken the gamble on the striker.