From now on, Michail Antonio is a member of the Jamaican national team as they prepare for a busy year consisting of the 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign and the Gold Cup.
A game-changer in the CONCACAF? You can be sure of that.
From waiting for an England call-up, to Jamaica’s hope for the World Cup. Antonio (Photo: Michail Antonio official Twitter account)
Jamaica over England
As the long-anticipated wait for the return of international football is almost over, and the road to the 2022 World Cup starts, some national teams are maximizing their efforts to bolster their squad and recruit players who are eligible to represent them. One of those teams is Jamaica, who managed to shock the CONCACAF power balances last week with a big announcement: West Ham striker Michail Antonio has chosen to switch allegiances and represent the Reggae Boyz over England.
Antonio, who will turn 31 next week, was born and raised in London and has been called up to the Three Lions squad on two occasions by both Sam Allardyce and Gareth Southgate - but never played. This fact kept his opportunity to represent Jamaica, the origin country of his parents. The Jamaican national team has contacted Antonio about the matter as early as 2016, but he has kept fighting for his ambition to play for England. Until now. And at the peak of his career, no less, which makes this decision so interesting.
History shows that more often than not, footballers in Antonio’s situation have switched allegiances as their career took a dip down, and they essentially lost a realistic chance to represent their home country. Examples like Jeremy Morel (Madagascar) or Victor Moses (Nigeria) immediately spring to mind, but Antonio’s career trajectory in recent years had only one direction: up. He is one of the best strikers in the Premiership in the past two seasons, and some say he even had a genuine chance of being called up for England’s European Championship squad this summer.
However, it seems Antonio was tired of waiting, and the prospect of regular international football at the height of his career played a significant part in his decision. With the World Cup just over a year away, it was time to make a decision. Antonio can play a major role in the qualifiers and give the Caribbean nation a massive boost on its mission to reach Qatar. He will join a good company and familiar faces, as Jamaica recently called up more English players with local roots - such as former wonderkid Ravel Morrison & Fulham players Bobby Decordova-Reid and Michael Hector. But most importantly, he will play alongside sensation Leon Bailey.
This type of cooperation makes fans drool and terrifies opposing defences. Antonio has already shown his quality around pacey and talented wingers in West Ham, who play around his immense physical ability in the box, feed on his clever play and enjoy the space he creates by magnetizing defenders. Bailey, who only played eight games for Jamaica so far, will flourish in this new environment. With such stiff competition in the Hexagonal, Jamaica needs every bit of quality to compete with the regional powerhouses.
The Jamaican's aren’t done at all with the recruiting process, as rumours connect them to players such as Demarai Gray (Bailey’s teammate from Bayer Leverkusen), Max Aarons, Mason Holgate, Ivan Toney and more. Antonio’s choice has the potential to be significant not only for Jamaica and their aspirations but also signal a tectonic change in dual national players’ view of representing their country of origin, and not just as an afterthought. Aaron Wan Bissaka, only 23 years old and one of the best defenders in the Premiership, is already rumoured to be considering snubbing England for a DR Congo call up.
Can Jamaica reach the World Cup?
It might be too late for Kingston born Raheem Sterling to join the party. Still, the Reggae Boyz are determined to become a regional power and return to the World Cup for the first time since 1998. Current coach Theodore Whitmore has played a major role as a player, scoring two goals in the nation’s only WC victory against Japan. Back then, Jamaica used a similar approach by calling up British-based players such as Deon Burton, Robbie Earle and Fitzroy Simpson - who all helped the team eventually qualify for France's tournament.
For Whitmore, the only thing that matters is a dedication to the purpose. “Once their heart is with Jamaica, nothing else can stop it”, he said. Integrating many new players at once into the international setup, particularly in the CONCACAF, can be a tremendous challenge for a coach. Still, no one knows better than Whitmore for what it takes, as a member of the 1998 squad. With Antonio, Bailey and who knows who else, Jamaica are aiming high. And imagine what will happen if they meet England down the road.
