Michail Antonio has admitted he did not intend to score against Tottenham as he was only trying to block Harry Kane during his side’s corner.
The Hammers secured a 1-0 win over Tottenham at the London Stadium on Sunday, courtesy of Antonio’s tap-in from Aaron Cresswell’s corner.
The defeat compiled more misery on Nuno Espirito Santo and his men, who succumbed to their fourth London derby defeat in as many games this campaign.
Antonio, 31, recorded the sixth goal of his career against Spurs, with all of his strikes versus the N17 side coming in the Premier League.
However, he has since admitted that he was not expecting to score from Cresswell’s second-half corner, and claims he was only in the box to try and block Spurs talisman Kane from clearing the ball away from goal.
Speaking to Sky Sports following the clash in West London, he said: “To be fair, I wasn’t really there to score today. I was kind of there to block Harry [Kane]. But the ball has come my way, being the poacher that I am, I stuck my foot out.
“I am not going to lie, I am surprised it went in. I kind of just got my foot there, just to get in front of him and it’s gone into the bottom corner.”
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Even though Antonio says he was not in the box to score, he was presented with the opportunity far too easily and he took it.
That really summed up Spurs’ performance in the second half, as the goal was too easy to give away, while the corner shouldn’t have happened in the first place.
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