Phil Thompson Slams West Ham Star Michail Antonio for His Role in Palace's Last-Gasp Equaliser

Sky Sports pundit Phil Thompson has blasted West Ham winger Michail Antonio following his side’s frustrating 2-2 draw with bottom of the pile Crystal Palace.

West Ham led the game 2-0 going into half time thanks to strikes from Javier Hernandez and Andre Ayew in what was a largely dominant first half, but Palace managed to turn the game on it’s head in the second half, firstly hitting back through a 51st minute penalty from Luka Milivojevic, before Wilfried Zaha made it 2-2 with a dramatic 96th minute equaliser.

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Though nothing can be taken away from Palace, Thompson- speaking to Sky Sports - launched a scathing review on Antonio’s role in the build up to Palace’s equaliser, claiming that he displayed a lack of professionalism and much arrogance.

West Ham were attempting to run down the clock in the final moments of the game - looking to build on their fantastic 3-2 Carabao Cup win against Spurs in midweek - when Antonio found himself with the ball by Palace’s corner flag. 

However, instead of trying to keep the ball, he decided to cross the ball into a nothing area, which lead to Zaha’s goal from the resulting counter-attack.

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Thompson has questioned why Antonio decided to cross the ball, instead of trying to keep it in the corner until the referee blew the final whistle.

“They’ll be screaming at him in the dressing room, they’ll be demanding answers from Michail Antonio,” he said. “And I hope he’s walked in there and given the biggest apology ever because it was so unprofessional, so arrogant of him. He’s let his teammates down.”

West Ham and Michail Antonio will get the chance to rectify their disappointing result at Selhurst Park when they face off against Liverpool next Saturday at the London Stadium.