West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini spoke to reporters after yesterday’s defeat to Tottenham, and singled out Michail Antonio for praise, as quoted by the club’s official website.
The Hammers were awful for large parts of the game against Spurs, and the 3-2 scoreline actually ended up flattering the home side.
Every West Ham player disappointed apart from Mark Noble and Michail Antonio.
The latter had been out since the end of August before coming on as a half-time substitute yesterday.
And he really impressed.
The Hammers have really missed the 29-year-old’s pace and power. And they looked like a totally different side with him in the team.
Pellegrini spoke to reporters after the game, and despite being visibly disappointed, he took time to praise Antonio for his performance after spending three months on the sidelines, as quoted by WHUFC.com:
“I was not surprised because I have seen him working the full week. He couldn’t start the game because he is just coming back from surgery to his muscle and three months out without playing one game. But you could see in the way he was working on the training ground that his performance reflected what he was doing.”
Having a fully fit Antonio is the one shining light for West Ham at the moment. They face back-to-back away games next against Chelsea and Wolves next.
And a Hammers fans will be hoping that the beast can help Pellegrini’s men pick some much needed points over the next week or so.
Should West Ham lose those two matches, however, it might just be the end for the Chilean.
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