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Inkersole: Trio deserve new deals

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Lukasz Fabianski, Mark Noble, and Michail Antonio all “absolutely” have to be handed new deals by West Ham, according to Football.London journalist Sam Inkersole. 

The trio are all out of contract in 2021, but Inkersole has claimed that it is imperative they are tied down to longer contracts between now and then.

Writing in a piece for Football.London, he said: “Lukasz Fabianski absolutely has to be handed a new deal, likewise Michail Antonio and Mark Noble, who activated an extension back in December.”

OPINION

It’s hard to disagree with Inkersole on any of these, but whereas Fabianski and Noble are obvious shouts, Antonio is perhaps less so. For one thing, he isn’t a nailed on starter like the others, and his recent injury record has left a lot to be desired. That being said, when he does feature, there can be little doubt that he is an impactful player. So far this season, for instance, he has averaged 3.6 shots, 1.4 key passes, and 2.1 successful dribbles per 90 minutes, as per Whoscored. In short, Antonio is a vibrant and versatile forward option to call upon when required, and no doubt Manuel Pellegrini will be keen to keep him around for as long as he possibly can.

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