West Ham striker Andy Carroll has been quizzed by Dublin Police for allegedly 'gouging a Sun photographer in the eye', reports the Daily Mail.
Paddy Cummins told the Sun that the footballer also tried to bite him.
He said: "He was like a wild animal. I felt this terrible pain in my eye as he gouged me.
Carroll was in Dublin for his team's Christmas party
"I was screaming, ‘My eyes!’ but he kept it up. The pain was incredible."
According to the Mirror, a West Ham spokesman said: "Andy Carroll was in Dublin as part of a social trip with full permission of the management team.
“Andy agreed to have a number of pictures taken at the request of a photographer who was waiting on the street.
“Despite this, the photographer then carried on taking photos in the close proximity of Andy and was politely asked to stop by the private security team working on the trip.
The spokesman said that Carroll’s security team then restrained the photographer. Eyewitnesses said there had been no contact between the striker and photographer.
Ireland's police force, the Garda, said no arrests had been made and a complaint was being followed up.