Charlie Austin has confirmed that he still wants to play in the Premier League and will move if the right club comes in for him, according to the Independent. Newcastle United have been heavily linked with the Queens Park Rangers striker this summer but decided to not pay the £15 million asking price as the club had concerns about Austin's injury problems. The frontman ended up staying at the Championship club but it's thought that Steve McClaren is still interested in signing the English forward and the player hasn't ruled out a future move. Speaking to the Independent Austin has revealed that he is focused on making sure that QPR gain promotion back to the Premier League but has stated that he would be open to a move when the transfer window re-opens in January. The 26-year-old, said:
"It's a massive move and I want to be at an established Premier League club. "One that is going forward and one that I feel will suit me.
"I know a lot goes around because of the way QPR played last year and they will question whether I can play as a one. "It has come up over the summer so that is another little hurdle you have to negotiate.
"I just feel that if something comes up and the club is the right one for me to go to, that will be it. The ones that came up this summer were not right for me."
Despite Aleksandar Mitrovic having already arrived from Anderlecht, Newcastle have remained hopeful of bringing in another striker and have chased Austin for the last two months but decided that he wasn't worth paying big money for. It will be interesting to see if the Magpies continue their pursuit of the striker in January where he will be free to start negotiations with what would be expected to be a large number of clubs.
NCTJ-accredited football writer with an MA in Sports Journalism. What Culture football editor. Write for the official Newcastle United programme. Former video reporter at North News. Featured and published in the Sunderland Echo, Shields Gazette, Mail Online, The Mirror, The Sun and others.
