Michail Antonio wins Premier League Player of the Month
By Louis Pye
Michail Antonio has won the EA Sports Premier League Player of the Month award for July after a miraculous run of form to help keep West Ham in the Premier League.
The 30-year-old scored eight goals in just seven games for West Ham to top the goalscoring charts, only matched by Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling. These goals alone earned the club a crucial six points, without which would have seen the club relegated to the Championship.
Antonio also created a further goal – Andriy Yarmolenko’s vital last-gasp winner against Chelsea in the Hammers’ critical 3-2 victory at the start of the month.
Since taking over the mantle as West Ham’s lead frontman, Iron Mike – as known by Hammers fans – has taken responsibility into his own hands with devastating displays that have made every defender in the league worry.
Alongside his phenomenal goalscoring stats, the Englishman stretched opposition defences with powerful runs, whilst also consistently linking up with teammates to ignite significant attacks. The likes of Jarrod Bowen and Tomas Soucek have each enjoyed individual success with Antonio as the focal point in the offence.
Now with just a short break from football before pre-season gets back underway, it is important that Antonio builds on the most lethal stretch of form during his career and stays motivated to create the same impact for West Ham over a full season.
It would be a big ask for him to match his recent goalscoring ratio throughout the entirety of the campaign, but with a rejuvenated Sebastien Haller set to come back into the mix, the potential of a devastating duo is definitely on the agenda.