MICHA HAS IRON EURO VISION YET
MICHAIL ANTONIO climbed off the deck after two late sucker punches and promised West Ham will be back in Europe – one way or another.
The Hammers face a mountainous task to reach the Europa League semi-finals after their
2-0 defeat by Bayer Leverkusen, leaving a top-seven finish in the Premier League looking their best hope of European action next season.
They may need to beat Fulham tomorrow to stay ahead of Newcastle and Chelsea in the race for Europe – and the game’s importance is not lost on Antonio.
He said: “If we can’t get into the semis and into the final to guarantee ourselves back into Europe next year, then obviously the Premier League’s another way to do it.
“We don’t want to give up on Europe. We constantly want to be in it – that’s another step for us, to be in Europe every year, so the Premier League is as important as playing in this quarter-final this week.”
Forlorn
West Ham’s bid for a third European semifinal in as many years looks forlorn after Lucas Paqueta and Emerson were both booked in Leverkusen, ruling them out of the return leg next Thursday through suspension.
With Jarrod Bowen a major injury doubt, after the England winger missed the trip to Germany, Antonio’s workload as lone striker isn’t about to become any lighter.
But he added: “The tie’s still alive. We have to believe. In football, it’s never over and we’ve got another 90 minutes to go, maybe 120 minutes.
“We keep going, keep pushing, keep believing.
“We can’t give up, we’ve got to believe in ourselves.”