Moyes insists Antonio staying at West Ham
LONDON (CMC): THE BOSS of English Premier League strugglers West Ham United says he has “no intention” of selling striker Michail Antonio despite the Reggae Boy admitting he has been talking to other clubs.
The 32-year-old Antonio, who has been at the Hammers since 2015 and is the club’s all-time leading Premier League scorer, said there was a possibility he could leave during the January transfer window.
But his club, who face Derby County away in the fourth round of the FA Cup tomorrow, are reluctant to sell their only fit senior striker amid injuries to Gianluca Scamacca and Danny Ings.
Manager David Moyes, on Friday, poured cold water on any move away, saying: “[Antonio] said it but we have got no intention of doing anything.
HAPPY TO HAVE HIM
“Sometimes players choose to do that, some of them want to go. But at the moment we want [him] here, we want him playing well, we want him scoring goals, and we’re happy to have him.”
Antonio, who has been linked with rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers and a loan move to Chelsea, said he would be upset if he left West Ham. He made his debut for Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz in September 2021, in a 3-0 defeat against Panama in a World Cup qualifier.
“Honestly, I’ve not ruled anything out. That’s all I can say. Nothing has been ruled out. There are talks, so whatever happens, happens,” he said on The Footballer’s Football Podcast earlier in the week.
“I won’t be upset about staying and I’ll definitely be upset if I leave because obviously I’ve enjoyed my time here, but football is football.
“Players move, players stay and eight and a half years at one club, I would never have thought of it because before I came to West Ham, the most I stayed at a club was two years.”
Antonio became the Hammers’ top scorer in the Premier League in August 2021 with his 48th top-flight goal breaking Paolo di Canio’s club record.
He has scored only four goals and provided three assists in all competitions so far this season in which Moyes’ side have found themselves in a relegation fight, but lifted themselves out of the bottom three last weekend with a win over fellow strugglers Everton.