Queens Park Rangers are increasingly confident of securing a permanent deal for influential striker Charlie Austin this summer, with West Brom 'unlikely' to extend his deal at the Hawthorns.

The 31-year-old re-joined the R's in the January window on an initial loan deal, and he was pivotal to the excellent second half of the season that Mark Warburton's side had, scoring eight goals in 21 games.

Therefore, the Londoners would love to bring Austin back from a football perspective, but there are a few issues to sort out before that would happen.

The most obvious centred on his contract with Albion, as the Baggies have an option to extend it by 12 months if they want.

However, TalkSPORT have revealed that whilst no definitive decision has been made, they are currently not expected to take that option up, meaning Austin would be a free agent in the summer.

And, the same report details that sources close to Austin believe a deal with QPR 'will get finalised', with talks between the two parties having already taken place.

The verdict

With Austin having worked for TalkSPORT recently, you would expect this to be a very reliable update from them, and if that's the case, it's great news for QPR.

The impact the former Swindon man had in the past few months was clear to see, not only did he score goals but he was a leader and helped the players around him.

From Austin's perspective, he seems to love it at QPR, so this is a deal that suits him, and you would expect it to happen if West Brom don't extend his deal.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.