West Ham are tonight insisting that Michail Antonio is not for sale and on course to return to the squad for the opening Premier League game at Liverpool.
The former Hammer of the Year has been linked with a move across London to Crystal Palace for weeks but there is no likelihood of that happening.
The 29 year old suffered a hamstring injury in the match against Southampton on March 31 and has been on a long terms rehab programme.
And we were told that had been going well and that he was certainly set for the match against Liverpool. There have been no recent inquiries for the player and Manuel Pellegrini – having seen him in action – believes he will be a key player in his set-up next season.
Very happy to hear it. Is a vital member of our squad. Especially without Lanzini.
I agree with SWTFishes – remember his assist for Chicorito against Watford (I think) – down the left wing and classy cross
Like many he did not have his best season but hopefully he can come back fit and strong
Yep, in 2016/7 he was often our most exciting play-maker. He didn’t do so well as I’d thought he would when having to effectively be a CF to cover others’ injuries, but as a RW cutting inside he’s great. Also, he can play LW, which with Lanzini out is a bonus. I just hope he can stay fit.
I think that Antonio is the same as Arthur – loses the ball far too often, if they achieve anything it is usually the result of their speed not their skill. Would any top six side want either of them? I don’t think so as they are not skilful enough. We must be ruthless if we want to progress. I’d sell both of them. Noble is in the same class. You cannot let sentiment overrule the need to progress.
I love Antonio, but he is still a bit of a ‘rough diamond’..
Careful inspection of his ball play, demonstrates that he is not making full use of his feet; if someone can instruct him to use all of the anatomically relevant regions of his foot (to good effect), he would make a quantum leap and start scoring more goals. Think we could do with a ‘forwards coach’..
That said, we should keep Antonio, since we all know that speed kills, and this guy can run!!
I totally agree that Antonio does not possess the ultimate in ball skill, but as I have said before I love him because of his other attributes. His aggression, his sheer power, his pace, his superb heading ability his goal scoring from any range and any situation, and his willingness to fight for the ball; these are all things any squad needs. Without him we don’t have anyone else who matches all his attributes. I think we would miss him badly, seeing that we are not likely to buy such a player.
He has had a bad season probably always struggling against injury, so he deserves a chance to re-produce the form of his hammer of the year season, which after all was only 2 years ago.