Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Football Daily Podcast, Charlie Austin has delivered a brutally honest view on whether or not he thinks West Brom will stay up this season.
Usually, footballers are very much on the fence when they’re asked about teams being relegated or winning the league, especially when it’s a club they’re still contracted to, but Austin didn’t hesitate to share his thoughts on the Baggies.
Austin was asked whether or not he thinks West Brom can stay up if Sam Allardyce can get the basics right at the club.
“They’ve got a tough ask, I mean that respectfully, they have got a tough ask because they need a couple more players in to help the group to get that,” Austin said.
“Unfortunately, the table doesn’t lie and you need to win games of football and at the moment they’re not winning enough.”
We can imagine that this will rub some West Brom fans up the wrong way.
At the end of the day, Austin is still their player, and while he has said that he means these comments respectfully, it’s not great for his employers or his teammates to hear that he doesn’t think they have much of a chance.
Unfortuantely, the reality is that Austin is saying this for a good reason. West Brom do face a tough task.
The Baggies have won just one league game all season, and when you’re in the middle of January that tally is nowhere near high enough for a side that is wanting to stay in the division.
Of course, there’s still a long way to go and the transfer window is open, but Austin’s comments show what an uphill battle the Baggies face.
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