Mikhail Antonio: West Ham -striker swears to return to football after the car crashed

The striker of West Ham United, Mikhail Antonio, insisted that he will play football again professionally if he recovered after a recently fatal traffic collision in December.

The 34 -year -old Antonio said he “almost died” when his car had a tree in Epping, Essex on December 7th, and said that he had “completely broken” his leg. However, he said he intended to return to the soccer field and suggests that he is months before the schedule in his recovery.

“Yes, 100%. I'm going to play again,” said Antonio of the BBC in an interview published on Monday when he was asked whether he could return to his previous level, even though he admitted that he was forced to stand up to the end of his career.

“I concentrate on that and why I work six days a week,” added Antonio. “I was always positive of this situation. It is a terrible accident and it is a massive injury.

“It is the greatest injury I have ever had in my career. But the fact that I am already two to three months ahead of me where I should be, I know that I will play again and I know that as soon as I play the game, the sharpness will get back.

“I was one of the fastest in West Ham. So my body was not the body of a 34-year-old before I had the accident. I can still be sharp and still do the business.

“People always have doubt about me. My mental strength is something I always believed in, and this is just another setback, and it won't stop me.”

Despite a large number of summer commitments, Antonio was an integral part of West Ham's squad. He made 15 appearances under Julen Lopetegui. His accident occurred in front of the now manager Graham Potter and took over in January.

The Jamaica striker also described his extensive injuries.

“I smashed my femoral bone in four different places,” he said. “I had a single keyhole surgery. They stuck a pole with four screws in my thigh, i.e. screws and screws to knit it together again.

“My first surgeon said he didn't want me to put some weight on my leg for three months, what was now nearby and you can see that I was going.

“We have a second specialist who said I had to increase with increasing weight of 10% to 100% within three weeks.

“But I kept my crutches for two weeks. Overall, they say that it will take between six and 12 months for my leg to heal properly.”