He was almost the forgotten man at Upton Park this season.

He was West Ham’s last deadline day signature in the summer transfer window and was widely thought to be on the verge of a £7m move to Derby County in the winter window. He was tagged as a missing person at one point and has laughed off the suggestion in his own unstuffy way. In The Guardian Antonio said: “To be honest, I see it as banter. I am laid-back and I don’t take it to heart. But if I am honest, for the first three months I was a missing person. I was sat on the bench, not playing, and stuff like that.”

The 25-year-old was assured by Slaven Bilic that it wasn’t his ability that stopped him making his start for The Hammers, it was just that he didn’t want to change a team that was doing well. Antonio bided his time, kept his head down, trained hard and eventually grabbed his opportunity and took it with aplomb. With sudden injuries to Victor Moses, Manuel Lanzini and Dimitri Payet, Antonio got the nod and took his place amongst the first team. He was right at home.

Antonio got his first goal for the Hammers at Upton Park against Southampton just after Christmas. He was named man of the match for the second home match running after scoring West Ham’s equaliser and setting up Andy Carroll’s winner – his shot coming back off the underside of the crossbar – to earn his side a first win in nine matches at the time. Since his first match, Antonio has played 14 times, three as sub, with three goals, 10 chances created and two assists to his name. In a short space of time, Antonio has become a fans’ favourite with his powerful, attacking displays.

From his time at Tooting and Mitcham, where he scored 33 goals in 45 appearances and worked part-time as a lifeguard, Antonio moved to Reading and was then loaned out to a number of clubs, including Cheltenham Town, Colchester United and Southampton. After an initial loan deal, Antonio signed permanently for Sheffield Wednesday before Forest signed him in 2014 for £1.5m. In 50 appearances for Forest, he was a much admired player by several clubs, but Forest kept resisting the temptation to sell him until the Hammers put enough cash on the table to take this rough diamond to Upton Park.

Now more of a gem, Antonio will surely keep his place in the West Ham first team and will only get better as he terrorises Premier League defences. It’s certainly looking like a good move for the Londoner, and one that might well end with international recognition.

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