West Ham United summer signing Edvin Austbø has admitted that he wants to play for an even bigger club in future.
Stavanger Aftenblad cover comments from the 21-year-old winger today. Despite ‘living the dream’ in London, he has grander plans for his career path.
The young Norwegian was the biggest player sale ever for a Norwegian club this summer when he joined West Ham in a €12.9m deal. Now he finds himself living in a hotel, playing for the Hammers and looking to establish himself in England.
He arrived in England from Viking, where he had been since a boy. And where he had earned attention around Europe, including Türkiye. Trabzonspor wanted to take him to the Super Lig, but he decided against it.
“The league, the club, the ambitions, and the nature of the club itself – I just felt it wasn’t quite right for me at that moment,” he says. A few months later, West Ham came calling.
“Everything felt right with West Ham,” he admits.
“The goal is to reach the Premier League, and that’s West Ham’s plan too. So hopefully, we’ll be there next year.”
Big changes for player
He’s now grappling with a sudden change in lifestyle, going from living with his parents to a London hotel. His girlfriend has also remained in Norway. They’ve only been together for three months. The biggest change, though, has been culturally.
“If you think football is serious business in Norway, it’s ten times bigger in England. Everything here is football. The fans are crazy – in a good way,” he says.
“I can’t keep up with my DMs because I get so many messages from fans welcoming me and wishing me luck. There’s a huge fanbase on social media.”
What rising star wants from future
The focus, for now, is finding his feet at West Ham and proving himself in the Championship. But that doesn’t mean his ambitions have been forgotten either.
“I’d like to play for an even bigger club in the future, even though West Ham is huge,” he concludes.
“The goal is to become so good that they have to sell me. But first, we’re going to achieve a few things here along the way.”
