A nightclubber has been left scarred for life after being attacked in a row over a taxi.

Ian Brooks underwent surgery to have a metal plate screwed into his skull and to have his cheekbone and eye socket reconstructed.

Mr Brooks, 33, of Roedean Road, Worthing, had been at the Liquid Lounge nightclub in Chatsworth Road, Worthing, and was waiting for a cab home when he got into an argument at a taxi rank in Chapel Road at 3.25am on Sunday.

He said: "I came out of the nightclub with Stuart, a friend from London, and we phoned for a taxi to take us home.

"A taxi turned up and I wanted to find out if it was mine so I approached it. I've got virtually no memory of it but Stuart told me this bloke came up and started having a go at me.

"The next thing he knew I was on the floor. Then this guy has taken his shirt off. Apparently I got up to have a go back and hit him back a couple of times but then he just laid into me."

The man was pulled away by friends and got in the taxi as Mr Brooks lay on the pavement, bleeding and concussed. He was taken to Worthing Hospital and then St Richard's Hospital in Chichester, where he underwent surgery.

He said: "I remember waking up in the morning with a neck collar on. I didn't know what the hell had gone on.

"I looked at my face and one side was all pushed out and my nose was like a flap of skin. I just thought 'Oh Jesus'. I was just so shocked."

Other injuries included a broken nose and cheekbone, cuts around the eyes which required stitches and nerve damage in his face. His vision is still blurred in his left eye and he suffers memory loss, meaning he would not now recognise his attacker.

Mr Brooks, a civil engineer, says he is now wary about going out for a drink in Worthing unless he was with a large group of people.

He admitted he may have drunk up to 15 pints of beer before the incident but said that was not unusual and would not have caused him to act aggressively.

He said: "I would like to know why he went so over the top."

The attacker was white, aged 20 to 25, thin, with short, spiky black hair. He had long, coloured tattoos on his upper right arm.

Detective Constable Andrea Thompson said: "There were a number of people present at the time and I would appeal to anyone to call me on 0845 6070999."

Police have been in contact with a man about the incident but have not yet made any arrests.