Dean Ashton has compared West Ham United forward to Marlon Harewood, as reported by the club’s official website.
What did he say?
Both Ashton and Harewood were very popular figures at Upton Park. The former played 56 times, scoring 19 goals and assisting three despite injuries, while the latter represented the club 164 times, netting 54 goals and setting up 14.
Their paths crossed in East London for two seasons, between 2005 and 2007, and watching Antonio has reminded Ashton of his former partner in crime.
Speaking to the Hammers’ official website, he said: “Antonio is an absolute handful and would be an absolute nightmare to play against for any defender because he’s got the pace, he’s raw and he’s as strong as an ox, and I think his end-product is improving season on season as well, which I think is so important.”
Ashton added: “Personally, when I played alongside Marlon Harewood, who was a similar type of player with that power, pace and clever runs, it makes your life so much easier to then find space and make sure you’re in the box when the ball comes in, which is exactly what happened against Southampton at the weekend.”
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Plenty of potential
There is real potential for Antonio and Sebastien Haller to become a troublesome pair for opposition defences, carrying a real threat for David Moyes.
As mentioned by Ashton, that was on full display against the Saints, as their slightly unorthodox one-two led to the Hammers’ second of the game, while Antonio raced behind Southampton’s defence to score the third.
Did he really play for us?! No West Ham fan has managed to name all of these obscure Irons signings….
There was also the incident in which Haller produced a rabona which Antonio got on the end of, but his effort was eventually saved by Alex McCarthy.
The Hammers have a tough run of games approaching, as they face Arsenal, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea, but the hope will be that they can continue showing this kind of threat to help keep West Ham in the Premier League.
Meanwhile, West Ham fans are showing absolutely no sympathy for David Sullivan.
