Charlie Austin’s £4m move: Proof QPR could still unearth gold | OneFootball

Charlie Austin signed for QPR in the summer of 2013 in what proved to be spectacular business by the R's.

Charlie Austin signed for Queens Park Rangers in the summer of 2013 following their relegation from the Premier League, leaving a mark on the club remembered years after he left.

QPR had just suffered relegation from the Premier League in the 2012/13 season, where they made numerous high-profile signings on substantial wages, which didn't work out, to say the least.

The likes of Jose Bosingwa, Christopher Samba, Loic Remy and Esteban Granero were all signed during the 2012/13 season and given extortionate pay packets, with only Granero sticking around for their next season in the Championship, though he would play only one solitary match in the second tier for the R's.

Harry Redknapp's side were aiming for an immediate promotion back to the top flight following relegation, and looked to rejuvenate the squad that summer by offloading as many of the big earners as they could, whilst strengthening with incomings.

Matt Phillips, Karl Henry and Richard Dunne all came through the door, along with the £4million signing of Austin from Burnley.

Austin had netted 24 times and added three assists in 37 Championship games for the Clarets the previous season, and was seen as the main man to score the goals to send the R's back to the top flight.

QPR hit the jackpot with the signing of Charlie Austin from Burnley

In his first season in West London, Austin straight away endeared himself to the QPR faithful, scoring 20 goals and assisting on three occasions in 37 appearances across all competitions.

An injury just past the midway point in the season saw Austin miss 12 games in a row, as QPR's form tumbled without their main man. However, it wouldn't matter in the end, as Bobby Zamora's late winner against Derby County in the play-off final fired the club back into the Premier League at the first time of asking.

Austin's first season as a Premier League footballer was a revelation. The Englishman eclipsed his tally of 17 goals the previous season in the second tier by scoring 18 goals and assisting a further six goals in 35 Premier League games.

Although QPR were relegated in last place, Austin's 24 goal contributions across the campaign were equal with Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez and Chelsea's Eden Hazard, whilst having more than Man United's Wayne Rooney and Man City's David Silva.

Austin stuck around with the R's until January of next season, scoring nine times and assisting once before a January switch to Southampton back in the Premier League.

The striker would never replicate his form from the 2014/15 campaign, with Austin having one of the best individual campaigns from a relegated side of all time.

Charlie Austin left a lasting impact among QPR fans

Austin, 36, left a lasting mark on the West London club, who brought him back to the club in January 2021 from West Brom, after he struggled for minutes with the Baggies.

He was unable to score the goals to fire QPR into promotion contention as he did eight years prior, leaving the club for the second time after one-and-a-half seasons to join Australian outfit Brisbane Roar in the A-League.

No QPR player has been able to top Austin's 18-goal haul in 2014/15, with Eberechi Eze coming closest in 2019/20 with 14 goals.

Now playing in the lower leagues of England with Basingstoke Town, it's safe to assume Austin's time at the top level has long since been over, but he will always be able to say he outscored some Premier League greats in his first season in the top flight.