I even took the physio on my Vegas stag do!
WEST HAM STAR MICHAIL ANTONIO ON THE SACRIFICES HE’S MADE TO GET FIT
MICHAIL ANTONIO is picking up the pace. ‘5,000-1!’ he says, grinning. ‘ Leicester City won the league, so anything can happen.’
As we enter the month of August, optimism is building at West Ham. After an occasionally traumatic first season at the London Stadium, combined with the toxic departure of dimitri Payet in January, this is a club that feels ready for progress once again.
High- quality summer signings have arrived in the form of Joe Hart, Pablo Zabaleta, Marko Arnautovic and Javier Hernandez, while Antonio — the club’s top goalscorer last season — signed a new long-term deal in May.
So, is it feasible to make a push for the top six? ‘i’m not saying we are going to win the league,’ Antonio says. ‘But you can’t guarantee those top six places will stay the same because a team could have six injuries in the first six games and football is unpredictable. We are never going to rule it out.’
For Antonio, 27, this has been a rewarding summer. The month of May saw him named West Ham’s player of the season and this was swiftly followed by the end of dragged-out contract talks, as he signed a contract worth £70,000 a week including add-ons.
For a while, it looked as if the talks might reach an impasse. He admits he wanted reassurances that West Ham saw him as an attacking player rather than a right back, where he played for parts of last season.
‘definitely,’ he says. ‘i don’t mind wing back but i don’t like to feel boxed in defence. i like to be free, involved and scoring goals — that’s when i’m happiest.
‘To me, it was about signing the right contract. i thought i did well enough to be among the high earners. it dragged on a bit longer but you have to play the game!’
Antonio bursts out laughing. Life is good for him. This summer he married girlfriend debbie Whittle and went on honeymoon to the Seychelles.
Amid the joy, Antonio battled a hamstring injury that flared up in April and required surgery. His determination to recover even interrupted his stag do.
‘i went to Las Vegas — the only place you can have a stag do! We were there for seven days. There were all my boys and Fraser the physio! i was doing workouts and up at 10am every day for sessions.’
The dedication paid off. The opening trip to Manchester United will come too soon but Antonio’s schedule puts him on track to travel to Southampton a week later. He will start full training with the first team on Monday.
He is eager to get started but some of the scars of last season need to heal. in West Ham’s debut campaign at the London Stadium, amid trouble in the stands and unease on the pitch, they took only 25 points from a possible 57 at home. Only four teams had a worse record.
‘The hardest games were against Man City — we let in 12 in three games. They give you a false sense of security. The moment you don’t press, they are in.’
But Antonio believes West Ham can turn the London Stadium into a fortress this season. ‘We need to find the consistency we had at the Boleyn ground. Towards the end of the season we started winning and got up to 11th. People said it was not a good season but we were a point off eighth. We can’t say it’s the stadium. The pitch is 10 times better than the Boleyn ground. it is a carpet — perfect.
‘The crowd didn’t really take to it but this is our home and the fans have to get behind us.’ With Arnautovic and Hernandez on board, Antonio is optimistic.
‘Marko is quality. With dimi (Payet), he was agile. He had that low centre of gravity, so Marko can do what he did. With Javier, we’ve needed a striker who gets goals. i finished last season with nine goals. That should not be the best record.’
This is a significant year for Antonio, who is a contender for England’s World Cup squad next summer. ‘it’s going to be at the back of my mind,’ he says. ‘Every player needs to be in top form. To have the experience of the World Cup would be unbelievable.’