The journalist at the centre of a contested article featuring comments attributed to Dimitri Payet insists that the interview was genuine.

Dimitri Payet with my pals at M20 services returning from Euro 2016, where he said: I'm 100% staying at #whufc pic.twitter.com/yuhBYsLXUl — Justin Allen (@justinallen1976) July 16, 2016

A story by writer Justin Allen, published in The Sun newspaper earlier this week claiming that Payet had told him he intends to remain at West Ham was subsequently dismissed as "fabrication" by the French international's representative Jacques Olivier Auguste.Speaking to Daily Mercato on Friday, Auguste claimed that "Dimitri has not done an interview with any media outlet", adding "these declarations are pure inventions in the imagination of a journalist".However an angry Allen contacted KUMB.com last night to challenge Auguste's version of events and insist that the interview DID take place - adding that he has witnesses plus a photo of Payet, taken at the time of the interview, to support his case.In the initial story, Allen - who has since posted the above picture via his twitter timeline - claimed that Payet told him he was "100 per cent staying at West Ham". He was offered the right to reply, but refused to comment.