During his stint at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Julen Lopetegui was known to be a big admirer of West Ham forward Michail Antonio. There were numerous reports of a January transfer raid on the Hammers, as the Spaniard eyed possible moves for both Aaron Cresswell and Antonio.
Therefore, it was no surprise that when Lopetegui was appointed as the Hammers’ head coach, he would immediately select Antonio to lead his attack. Unfortunately for the former Real Madrid coach, the reality of today’s version of Antonio was probably somewhat different from the player Lopetegui considered buying 18 months ago.
At his best, the Jamaican striker is described as being in “beast mode,” but so far this campaign, Antonio has looked nothing like his best and could, in many respects, be described as playing in “least mode.”
However, in his appearance off the substitute bench during a dull affair for the Hammers, the West Ham striker looked sharp, strong, and, most importantly, ready for battle. He immediately caused problems for Liverpool’s young defenders, and his performance was comfortably the best we’ve seen from him this season.
With summer signing Niclas Füllkrug still yet to make an impression for the Hammers and with Lopetegui under huge pressure, Antonio’s return to something approaching his best form could not be better timed.
Much has been made of West Ham’s porous defence, but the Hammers clearly have major issues in the striking department. This is nothing new; it’s an open secret that the club has been looking for a regular prolific goal scorer for years.
While it’s clear that Michail Antonio’s best days are behind him, he could still play a crucial role in helping West Ham and Lopetegui begin the recovery process. Questions will remain about West Ham’s summer recruitment, particularly the inability to sign Jhon Duran from Aston Villa. However, Antonio still has a part to play this season, and if he can recapture some of the performance shown against Liverpool, then Lopetegui stands a better chance against Brentford.
Watching Antonio now . Is giving me vibes of watching the post prison version of mike Tyson. Occasionally capable of glimpses of their former selves . In short bursts but nothing more. He really shouldn’t be starting.