Why has Michail Antonio been overlooked by England thus far?

Whilst much was expected of Michail Antonio when his name was initially announced upon Sam Allardyce’s first – and surprisingly last – Three Lions squad as England manager, the in-form West Ham United winger has so far been largely ignored upon the international stage of late, with Gareth Southgate failing to include the 26-year-old in either of his last two outings as the man temporarily tasked with leading England to victory.

 

Antonio has nonetheless scored five goals in 2016/17 amongst an admittedly struggling Hammers outfit – who without the priceless contribution of the former Nottingham Forest favourite this term – could very well be sitting bottom of the Premier League pile with little to show for their efforts. It therefore seems as if the wide-man at least warrants the chance to show what he is capable of upon the international scene.

 

 

Those among the current West Ham United hierarchy clearly wanted to see their man in action against either Malta or Slovenia recently…

 

What's the point in taking @Michailantonio , if you ain't gunna play him! Play him he will deliver.

— Jack Sullivan (@jsullivanwhu) October 11, 2016

 

…which is a notion that has been echoed among many fans of the Premier League as well…

 

Feeling sorry for you bro @Michailantonio your the leading English top scorer in the prem and can't even get 5 minutes for England. So sad?

— danny✨ (@KingAntxnio) October 11, 2016

 

Antonio seemingly deserved a chance to show his worth based on his recent goal-scoring form alone…

 

Michail Antonio is the top English scorer this season.

Rightfully earned a chance but still doesn't get minutes on the pitch.

— Uber West Ham (@UberWestHam) October 11, 2016

 

…especially as his goals have come among a side clearly struggling for form right in the here and now…

 

Seriously…will @Michailantonio get a chance for England? He's scored 5 goals this season. Give him a shot

— Alasdair Hooper (@adjhooper1992) October 11, 2016

 

With several other first team England stars finding it difficult to assert themselves in recent outings…

 

#England should be giving @Michailantonio some game time. Other lads are good but to predictable. Come on Southgate, is your full squad.

— JPG (@GilissenJPG) October 12, 2016

 

…Michail Antonio isn’t the only name who seemingly deserves a little credit from the Three Lions setup these days…

 

Its time for @DannyDrink & @Michailantonio to get their chance in a @ThreeLions Shirt

— Dave Banks (@dbankseee) October 12, 2016

 

As Antonio is currently the most potent English goal-scorer among the entire English top-flight…

 

Imagine struggling for goals against Malta and Slovenia and giving no minutes to your nations top goalscorer this season @Michailantonio

— Green St. Hammers (@GreenStHammers) October 11, 2016

 

…England are simply asking for trouble by not issuing the powerful wide-man his well-deserved chance! 

 

There's one thing England don't have right now, unpredictability….time for @Michailantonio #COYI

— Nick Lowery (@nick_lowery) October 11, 2016