Last month, there had been some controversy in the Austrian press about the social time that West Ham striker Marko Arnautović had with Edin Dzeko after a match.
Austria had lost to Bosnia 1-0 with a goal scored by Dzeko, and the players posted a picture on Instagram enjoying the night out after the game.
There was some discontent from fans and media, and even the Bosnian national team manager had to comment on the matter, saying Arnautovic is an adult and should answer for his own actions.
Now the West Ham player has spoken to Austrian outlet Laola1, and tried to make things cooler by talking about the good relationship he has with Dzeko, who’s a ‘very quiet guy’.
“Edin is a very good friend of mine,” Arnautovic told Laola1. “He is also a family man, a very quiet guy, a great character, so I really appreciate this man – I appreciate him both as a human and footballer.”
“We’ve met a few times before in Manchester and he’s been in Vienna a few times, he knows people I know, that’s how we got to know each other. Because we lived in the same city and often traveled together.”
Arnautovic has also spoken about his fitness. He claims that he always plays, regardless of the pain on his knee, and never knows if he will need an injection on match-day.
“It’s just that, I have to take it that way, but of course it’s not optimal, of course there are people who think I should spare myself and do nothing for a week, but that’s not so easy.”
“I can’t say yet if I’ll take an injection on Thursday.”
