Michail Antonio has now decided to represent Jamaica internationally ahead of the World Cup, having snubbed the Caribbean nation in 2016.
The 30-year-old was approached by Jamaica last month but was still considering whether he wanted to play for England at the time.
However, a report from Sky Sports has confirmed Antonio will choose to represent the country of his heritage over the country of his birth in search of regular international football.
Jamaica are due to play an international friendly against the United States on March 25th, and West Ham fans could potentially see their seasoned striker announced in the Reggae Boyz squad before then.
Interestingly, Antonio has been in England’s thinking before. The versatile forward has been included in England squads under both Sam Allardyce and Gareth Southgate in the past but was never capped.
The president of the Jamaica Soccer Federation, Michael Ricketts, has claimed that West Ham’s striker is “determined” to represent the Caribbean nation, but only as soon as the necessary paperwork can be acquired.
Jamaica could be set for a wide influx of ‘UB40s’ – a term used for England-born Jamaican international, named after the Anglo-Jamaican reggae stars – following Antonio’s inclusion on a wider list of players in the process of acquiring Jamaican passports.
JFF chief Ricketts has previously claimed:
“I see Andre Gray, Demarai Gray, Isaac Hayden, Mason Holgate, Liam Moore, who already has his Jamaican passport, Nathan Redmond, Kemar Roofe and Ivan Toney — all of these we are in the process of acquiring their Jamaican passports.”
Opinion
It’s an exciting time for Jamaican football – and for West Ham fans too.
Entering his thirties, fans will surely share in the joy of seeing their star striker lighting up the international stage and can expect to see Antonio becoming a mainstay of North American football.
