Growing confusion surrounds Antonio
West Ham insiders remain puzzled at Michail Antonio regularly being used as a first choice right back.
The right sided midfielder was brilliant going forward against Swansea but was possibly at fault for two of the goals in the 4-1 hammering at Upton Park yesterday.
And last night ClaretandHugh was told by a highly placed source that several of the staff were finding the position difficult to understand given that both James Tomkins and Sam Byram were available.
Tomkins remained on the bench for the 90 minutes which astonished many who also could not understand either why, having been moved forward with Kouyate taking the defensive role, the Senegal midfielder was then taken off and Antonio returned to right back during the second half.
Statistics show that in eight games when Antonio has been used on the right side of midfield he has scored three goals and made three assists for a mean average of 1.75 points per game, 1 goal conceded per game.
In his seven games at right back there has been one goal, no assists for an average of o.85 points per game, >2 goals conceded per game.
ClaretandHugh was told: “It’s puzzling to put it mildly but at the end of the day the manager has to be allowed to make his own decisions. “
Absolutely agree. We need a permanent back four, someone the equal of Cresswell at RB. Either buy one or rotate Tonks and Byram.
It’s a real mystery – playing Moses, who is completely useless, in front of Antonio especially when Tomkins (and Byram) are available, just don’t understand it.
Especially considering that Antonio has looked our most dangerous player lately and Bilic expects him to keep galloping up and down the right wing.
It is my earnest wish that we might have seen the last of Moses – Antonio to be played up on the right with Tomkins at right back and Sakho through the middle, Carroll then to come on when the game is getting stretched – makes sense to me!
If it’s not broken don’t fix it is probably why they left it as it was,but we have been lucky the 2 games before that in the first 20 mins,
Moses being part of the setup was the surprise to me,why he was going to offer any more then Sak or Enner I do not see,if anything giving Obiang a place to cover Antonio going forward would have been better
But if in the first 20 min we could have been 2 up and we had chances when 1 down to go ahead,
Slav must have had his reason,
Still think the party should have waited till the season is finished,