✍️ Welcome Michail Antonio

[bowltorious]

Ah okay, I didn't realise he had a full rupture. Yeah, 3 months minimum and then he needs a month or so to get fit so sounds about right. I swear we only ever get major long term injuries, always to first teamers aswell.

[since86]

Or sell someone with the fantastic combination of no brain and a terrible footballing technique whilst their stock is high. Wise.

No, not wise, not by a long way. So a long term strategy for our football club is to sell our best players? Whose to say his stock won't rise further? Which by the way would benefit us as he would have done it while playing for us. How many clubs do sell their key talent, and see their situation improve? Spurs? Southampton? Anyone in our mid-table mini-league? Doesn't happen.

I think you're doing him a massive disservice and showing a huge lack of respect to suggest he has no brain and terrible technique. The guy has arguably shown greater technique than many players given the multitude of positions he's played in, scored goals and been called up for his national side, and you think selling him is a wise decision?

Barmy.

[Ben]

amazing that someone with no football brain or technique has scored with his left foot, right foot, head and assisted goals.
that's up there with the myth that he can't control the ball

[hammerdivone]

Play him where he doesn't want to play though and we all have seen what he becomes. A shirker.

This is the biggest load of bollox I have read on here in a long time, and that's saying something!

[since86]

This is the biggest load of bollox I have read on here in a long time, and that's saying something!

Agreed. Mental. Sometimes I wonder whether we are all watching the same games, the cobblers you read on here.

[Crouchend_Hammer]

Ah okay, I didn't realise he had a full rupture. Yeah, 3 months minimum and then he needs a month or so to get fit so sounds about right. I swear we only ever get major long term injuries, always to first teamers aswell.

No idea if has a full rupture either
However, someone posted that he was in a leg brace at the awards do and would tally up with being out until August

My concern, having ruptured my hamstring before, is that it is very difficult to sort it properly. I had a top surgeon who has treated quite a few footballers but it hasn't felt quite right since. Obviously Antonio will get much better re-hab then I did, but for a player who relies on explosive speed and physicality having an iffy hamstring is not ideal

[MB]

amazing that someone with no football brain or technique has scored with his left foot, right foot, head and assisted goals.
that's up there with the myth that he can't control the ball

Yeah those are bizarre things to pick out. There seems to be this perception amongst some that he is just the sum of his physical attributes.

His positional sense and ability to read what is going on about him is a bit suss (IMO), but give him a role with limited defensive duties and he is top notch.

[Rays Rock]

i would say unorthodox rather than poor technique.
its usually the the Unorthodox talents that make a name for themselves in any walk of life.
good on him

[RichieRiv]

However, someone posted that he was in a leg brace at the awards do and would tally up with being out until August

Full on leg brace with crutches. He was far from mobile.

[Crouchend_Hammer]

Definitely a full rupture then. An absolute bugger of an injury I can tell you

[Lostcoco]

Just our luck this injury sets off more injuries and he becomes the next Andy Carroll/Sakho :lol:

[Jumby]

We must have the worst injury record in World football, apart from Chapecoense, over the last 10 years. We've had Ashton, Dyer and Collison have their careers ended whilst countless others have been in and out of the treatment room as if it's a new sport.

[Colours never run]

I've also thought the same many a time Jumby. I find it staggering to think just how much genuine bad luck and poor management in some cases we've had to endure for donkies years now. Barely a season goes by without a catalogue of injuries which surpass most Clubs when compared to what what they've had to endure themselves. All teams have a fair share of injuries but ours seem to take the biscuit.

Could be wrong but the best season we had of it in recent times, was our first season back under Pardew where he pretty much had most of the team to call upon and keep a settled side playing most weeks building real continuity and it showed in our consistent results and performances even for a newly promoted team. Then soon after that summer, Ashton gets effectively his career ending injury and it snowballs rapidly from there. Bar that season most of our Premier League era seems to have been littered with no end of big injuries and absences because of it.

Some other Clubs honestly don't know how good they've had It, especially those who whinge about the occasional injury to a key player.

It frustrates me to think just where we would be had we either been predominantly injury free for a season or 2 being able to call upon our very best talent throughout regularly. Eternally cursed, I'm sure of it.

[RichieRiv]

But other clubs do have injury problems, it's just we're not exposed to them. With noble now sidelined we have 9 players out (the most in the league) but there are 3 clubs with 8 and the richest club in the world with all their resources, on 7.

[westham,eggyandchips]

But other clubs do have injury problems, it's just we're not exposed to them. With noble now sidelined we have 9 players out (the most in the league) but there are 3 clubs with 8 and the richest club in the world with all their resources, on 7.

On the up side, the players coming in like Fernandes and Nordveit should be pretty fresh.

[Bend it like Repka]

This site never ceases to amaze me. Apparently our Hammer of the Year is a shirker would should be sold so as to cash in on his full value.

Wow.

[Ozza]

Congrats to the bloke, just goes to show you that hard work, dedication and a single mindedness to achieve in the game can get you. There are a lot of players out there without the drive of this guy that think they deserve the living they get, this bloke got knock back after knock back and through his dedication just earns himself a 60k a week deal, and it's well deserved.

Did some plumb on here really just call him a shirker??

[hessa]

Personally I'm not a huge fan. I thought he was outstanding last season, busted a gut and gave everything for the team whenever he was on the pitch. This season for me, he has a sense of entitlement about him. I know the general consensus is that Slav was a plum using Antonio at right back and persisted with it for far too long. I think that he has the necessary abilities to have made a far better go of the position than he did, and the major reason he was so poor was due to his attitude. He didn't want to play there and his body language at the time made that clear for all to see. One home game earlier in the season, can't remember who against, a sub was made and he was shifted to right back and his shoulders slumped and his head went down. I get that he doesn't feel its his best position and doesn't want to play there, but the fact is that I'd expect any player to do whatever is for the good of the team and if you are asked to play out of position, you take one for the team and give 100%. For me he didn't do that, he put himself above the team.

Defensively he went missing week after week earlier this season, but due to his scoring record it was largely overlooked. I'm no statto, but would hazard a guess that he was culpable for far more conceded goals than he scored at the other end. It started first game of the season, dribbling out of his own area and got caught in possesion, absolutely ridiculous goal to concede, the average 10 year old would know better than trying to dribble the ball out of your own congested area. That isn't anything to do with not being suited to playing right back, its being brainless.

I guess its all about opinions, but I do think his goal scoring record papers over a lot of deficiencies.

[BillUp]

I don't think signing Antonio to a £70K a week contract is the big issue here. It was buying Snodgrass and paying him the same amount. What were they thinking?

[brooking_1980]

I guess Bilic & Antonio must have spoken about playing Mike at RB. Mike must have said boss, I really don't want to play there. Slav must have told him, look its going to make you a better player, its for the Team, its for your future, you're playing there.

We all saw how reluctant Mike was out there, everyone banging on how wrong it was, I wonder what disharmony/split this may have caused in the dressing room ?