Michail Antonio has said that former teammate Dmitri Payet was the best player he has ever played with as a footballer.
The two played together for just two and a half seasons in east London having both joined the club in the summer of 2015, Antonio for £7million from Nottingham Forest on Deadline Day and Payet from Marseille for £10million.
The duo both played major roles in the Hammers final season success at Upton Park when the team secured European football ahead of their first season at London Stadium.
However, Payet departed in acrimonious circumstances in 2017 after demanding a move away from the club and eventually left for £25million to rejoin his former side Marseille.
The Frenchman certainly left an impact in east London, scoring 12 goals and setting up 15 others in his debut campaign for the club which saw him called up for the French national team for Euro 2016 in his homeland.
Payet’s departure angered the entire Hammers fanbase as he hadn’t long signed a new contract extension at the club until 2021.
His impact at the club not only left a legacy with the supporters but seemingly his teammates, Antonio one of them.
In a Q&A with the forward on the Hammers official site, when asked who the best player he has ever played with was, Antonio replied: “Dimitri Payet. Hands down. The guy was magic.”
Antonio also jokingly said the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was the best around “because I am in the history books there.”
Antonio was the first visiting player to score at the £1billion arena when West Ham beat their arch rivals 1-0 on April 27 last year to become the first team to win at Tottenham’s new stadium.
