David Moyes makes it clear star Michail Antonio is finished as first choice at West Ham but now he must have the courage of his convictions
David Moyes has made it clear star Michail Antonio is finished as first choice at West Ham but now he must have the courage of his convictions.
Michail Antonio has been a fantastic servant for West Ham since signing for just £7.5m from Notts Forest back in 2015.
He has scored memorable goals, played in all manner of positions and given the Hammers so much.
But West Ham fans have long felt Antonio has had his day in the sun as a Premier League striker.
The forward has been particularly ineffective this season and is without a goal since August.
David Moyes makes it clear star Michail Antonio is finished as first choice at West Ham but now he must have the courage of his convictions
West Ham pressed the life out of Arsenal and looked so much more fluid, dynamic and dangerous.
The general consensus of opinion after that memorable 3-1 win was that Moyes had found the answer to life beyond battering ram Antonio.
This was Moyes-ball 2.0, the evolution the Hammers had long needed. West Ham’s manager even said so himself after the game.
Moyes made it clear star Antonio is finished as first choice at West Ham but now he must have the courage of his convictions.
“I’m loathe to say he’s (Bowen) suddenly a No9 because we might need him to play No7 and do the job that he’s doing there,” Moyes said of the striker situation ahead of the weekend’s game at Brentford.
One thing saying it, another thing doing it Moyes
“But in time I see it changing for Jarrod, I really do.
“Hopefully, people would have seen my thoughts over a few months. I actually think Freiburg was probably the night, he was terrific that night in Freiburg and I think that made me feel it.
“We had a bit of a blip after the international break but the game (against Arsenal) the other night got us back on track. And the performance, more importantly, from the likes of Mo and Jarrod and (Lucas) Paqueta got us thinking there are other solutions to what we’ve got here.”
West Ham fans were understandably bemused and frustrated then when Moyes reinstated Antonio in the starting XI at Brentford.
It backfired spectacularly with his ridiculous miss from a yard out widely seen as the moment that cost West Ham the game at 2-1 up before going on to lose 3-2.
It’s all well and good Moyes making these statements about seeing Bowen as the new first choice striker.
Antonio has had his day and is fortunate to still be involved in the first team at a big club like West Ham, it’s time to move on and Moyes knows it
It is another thing entirely having the courage of your convictions to really go with it.
If that puts Antonio’s nose out of joint, so be it. At nearly 34 and given his lack of goals and fading effectiveness, Antonio should just count himself lucky to be involved in the first team squad at a massive club like West Ham.
West Ham have always been terrible at knowing when to say ‘thanks for the memories and goodbye’ to players.
Antonio is now firmly in that category.
Moyes must ditch his small club mentality when it comes to the Antonio situation and move on with the brave, new-look Hammers side we saw dazzle for long spells – especially the second half – against the Gunners.
