West Ham player says he was devastated not to start against Aston Villa

By Milo Clay

West Ham United forward Michail Antonio has admitted that he was devastated that he was not able to start against Aston Villa over the weekend. 

The Hammers were held to a 1-1 draw at the London Stadium on Sunday, with Said Benrahma bagging their only goal from the penalty spot. 

David Moyes was without Antonio as the striker had picked up a calf injury and he opted for Danny Ings to lead the line. 

West Ham will be kicking themselves after they carved out some decent openings on the day, with a couple falling to the goalscorer Benrahma. 

And Antonio feels that he would have ‘thrived’ against Villa’s high defensive line on Sunday. 

Antonio admits he was gutted to miss Villa clash 

Speaking on the Footballer’s Football Podcast, Antonio admitted that he was gutted to have missed out against Villa. 

“Me getting two goals against Larnaca I was gutted I didn’t get to play this weekend, as I wanted to get the momentum,” he said. “Having to miss the game was frustrating.

“The game was made for me, they play such a high line, and the runs in behind – you saw Jarrod [Bowen] get a few where we put the ball over the top of them and he was in on goal or setting somebody up.

“It was a game I would have thrived in.” 

Antonio hasn’t been at his best this season as he has only managed to net three times in the Premier League. 

The 32-year-old has netted nine times in all competitions, but West Ham have struggled in-front of goal this season. 

Moyes did move to bring in Ings from Villa, but the Englishman’s start to life in London has also been impacted by injuries. 

The Hammers need to start picking up wins to ensure they aren’t in a relegation battle come the end of the season.

Moyes’ men sit just outside the relegation zone on goal difference at the moment and they will be hoping to have Antonio back as soon as possible. 

The £85,000-a-week man may be lacking confidence in-front of goal, but he is still proving to be more effective than the likes of Ings and Gianluca Scamacca at the moment.