West Ham players called upon to ‘go again’ by Michail Antonio
West Ham United exited the FA Cup in midweek as they were comfortably beaten 3-1 by Southampton and Michail Antonio isn’t pleased.
The Jamaican scored the Hammers’ only goal of the game as Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side proved too much to set up a quarter-final tie with Manchester City.
Their cup exit doesn’t help their search for better form as they have been caught and passed by Arsenal and Manchester United in the race for the top four in the Premier League.
Antonio defiantly defended his fellow Irons players insisting that they have the ability to go again every single week.
“One thing about us is that nothing knocks us down. We don’t stay down. We get up and we go again,” the 31-year-old said, as quoted by the Express.
“Obviously we wanted to go further in the cup – but now we’ve got to concentrate on what we are in – the Europa League and the Premier League.
“We’re still going for the top four, so with all the negatives that happened on Wednesday, we’ve got to think about the positives. Let’s just keep moving forwards.”
100% focus on Europe
This might seem like a crazy thing to do but maybe it’s the best course of action for David Moyes and West Ham right now.
The ferocity of the battle for fourth in the Premier League might prove to be too much for this small Hammers squad as the games pile up week on week.
With the Europa League returning next week, Moyes may have to select his priority to ensure his players aren’t run into the ground through the sheer number of games.
If he decides to focus on continental success, he could arguably have a better chance of Champions League football next season if they go all the way and win the competition.
The way the top-four race is going right now, that seems almost impossible via the Premier League so logic dictates they focus on Europe if that’s where they want to be next season.
In other West Ham news, Benfica want a record-breaking deal to sell star striker Darwin Nunez to the Irons this summer.
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