According to The Telegraph, West Ham United forward Michail Antonio is ready to switch allegiance from England to Jamaica in a bid to play at next year’s World Cup.
Sportslens View
The 30-year-old was approached by the Caribbean island nation back in 2016, but he chose to represent the Three Lions internationally.
The West Ham star was called up by former England manager Sam Allardyce in his first squad in August 2016 for a 2018 World Cup qualification match against Slovakia.
However, Antonio was an unused substitute. Current boss Gareth Southgate invited the versatile forward to his squad for the friendly match against Germany and the 2018 World Cup qualifier against Lithuania in March 2017.
However, he withdrew from the squad after picking up a hamstring injury. He has not been called up since then, and despite his fine form over the last 18 months for West Ham, a recall does not appear to be on the cards.
Since he is yet to make his Three Lions debut, Antonio is qualified to play for Jamaica and they have now moved to secure his international future.
It is understood Antonio is set to accept their approach and would relish the chance to help them reach the World Cup.
He could feature in their CONCACAF qualifiers in September against Mexico and Costa Rica, and it will be interesting to see how things go.
Jamaica have not been at the World Cup since France 1998, and they will be relying on the likes of Antonio, Ravel Morrison and Fulham star Bobby Decordova-Reid in a bid to qualify for the 2022 edition.
The Hammers star has scored 22 Premier League goals and assisted 10 others since the start of 2018-19, and he will now look to replicate the form on the international scene with Jamaica.
In other news, West Ham are reportedly planning to sign a Rangers star this summer.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
