Fortunately, West Ham United number nines past and present Callum Wilson and Michail Antonio are very good friends.
That made the prospect of the former replacing the latter at the London Stadium, and taking his number nine shirt in the process, that little bit less awkward.
While Callum Wilson joined West Ham United on a free transfer on August 2nd, Michail Antonio’s own fate would not be confirmed until a week later.
The Hammers finally bid farewell to their record Premier League goalscorer eight months after the horror car crash which brought a premature end to his career in claret and blue.
Now, speaking to the latest edition of the Ironcast podcast, Wilson sheds a light on the rather awkward situation he walked into, and how West Ham handled the passing the baton moment between an iconic number nine and the shirt’s latest recipient.
West Ham United striker Callum Wilson opens up on Michail Antonio conversation
Speaking at the time, Wilson admitted that Michail Antonio ‘only mentioned positive things’ about the East London outfit. While large sections of the fanbase took issue with the nature of Antonio’s departure, the man himself was nothing if not classy from the first minute to the last.
“[My signing] was kept quite quiet initially,” Wilson explains. “With his situation going on as well, I wasn’t sure how to approach it.
“But, with us being friends, basically we just say what we think to each other. I called him and said; ‘Mikey, I’m joining West Ham’. And he said; ‘I know, fantastic club…’
“I asked him about his situation because, obviously, you are the number nine and if you are going to be staying around, which I wasn’t sure about. But he said; ‘Carry on!’
“So I got his blessing really. A fantastic player who wore it before me, and I just like to keep doing it justice like he did!
“It was a great conversation. He couldn’t speak highly enough of West Ham. He probably already knew what he was doing without saying anything about the personal conversation he said, but I spoke to him out of respect. I didn’t want him to turn up and just see me there, you know!”
Antonio will not be re-joining Lukasz Fabianski at West Ham
Yet to find a new club following the expiration of his contract, Michail Antonio has been keeping up his fitness with Mark Robson’s Under-21 side in recent weeks.
That allowed Wilson to meet his old friend in person at Rush Green, though Hammers News have since confirmed that Antonio will not be ‘doing a Lukasz Fabianski’ and re-joining the club on a short-term deal.
Wilson, meanwhile, wishes he could have played alongside his friend, rather than replace him.
“We shared a few days together where he was training with the Under-21s and I was obviously in the training ground,” adds Wilson, who opened his West Ham account in the 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest before the international break.
“We actually said it’s a shame we are not at the club at the same time!”
Fabianski made his West Ham return during the 5-1 EFL Trophy thrashing of MK Dons on Tuesday night. The 40-year-old goalkeeper started on a night when Preston Fearon – who wasn’t even born when Fabianski won the first trophy of his career – scored two beautiful left-footed finishes, Callum Marshall then netting a brace of his own.
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