West Ham United forwards Michail Antonio and Gianluca Scamacca have played together for just 13 minutes in a single match so far this season.
Late on in Sunday’s 1-1 draw away to Southampton, David Moyes opted for the latest of many like-for-like swaps of the two strikers in the 87th minute, in this case bringing Antonio on for Scamacca. This decision was met with boos from the away end.
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“I can understand it,” Moyes said of the fans’ reaction when the game was there to be won. “We were gung-ho, we were just looking at somebody who we thought had run out of steam. We got Scamacca further than we’ve got him in any other game, so no problem. I thought we played well enough, just couldn’t turn our opportunities into goals.”
The only time Antonio and Scamacca have played together was in the second half of the 2-0 home loss to Brighton & Hove Albion on August 21. Scamacca joined the fray as a 62nd-minute substitute when West Ham were only one behind, with Antonio playing left wing shortly before being replaced by Maxwel Cornet on 74 minutes.
Scamacca, who is the club’s top scorer with six goals in all competitions, is yet to play 90 minutes since his £35.5million summer arrival from Sassuolo of Serie A but is getting closer — his 80 minutes against Fulham and 87 a week later at St Mary’s were both new highs for him.
Of the eight starts the 23-year-old Italy international has made among his 14 West Ham appearances, Antonio has directly replaced him in all but one. In Scamacca’s six games off the bench, he has been brought on for Antonio four times.
The pair have scored a combined total of 10 goals. If you add Jarrod Bowen into the mix, it is 15 of the club’s 24 from the trio.
Scamacca has adapted seamlessly to English football, Antonio has shown he still has plenty to offer at 32 and Bowen is belatedly finding form as he tries to force his way into Gareth Southgate’s plans for the World Cup next month.
Moyes’ preferred 4-2-3-1 system means he is reluctant to play with two strikers.
After the 1-0 defeat away to Everton on September 18, he offered insight into why he is against it.
“Can you play the two of them? I’m sure that, in time, I will look at it,” Moyes said. “At the moment, to play two strikers, you have to play three at the back. It’s very hard nowadays to necessarily go with a 4-4-2, so to play two strikers is mainly three at the back. We might consider and look at it if we think we’ve got the players.”
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However, Moyes does not have to play 4-4-2 to restore Antonio to the line-up. He could switch him to the left wing.
That left flank is one of the few positions which remains up for grabs at West Ham.
Bowen has nailed down the right side, Lucas Paqueta is the No 10 and Scamacca leads the line, but Pablo Fornals, Cornet and Said Benrahma often rotate as the starter on the left.
Those three have their strengths and their limitations.
Fornals is capable of making a defence-splitting pass and never shies away from his defensive duties. But he lacks pace and is a wasteful finisher.
Cornet had an immediate impact following his summer switch from relegated Burnley. He amassed five assists in six appearances but hasn’t made a matchday squad since sustaining a thigh injury in the 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on October 1.
Benrahma can be the difference, and his assist for Declan Rice’s equaliser at the weekend is a case in point. But similarly to Fornals, he perhaps lacks the consistency to be a regular starter.
The attribute that makes Antonio different to all of them is his pace, despite being the oldest of the quartet by five years. Speed is still one of his main strengths and this could make him effective in wide areas.
Moyes still views Antonio as a striker, but his versatility should also be viewed as a plus for West Ham’s attack.
A per-90-minutes comparison of Antonio and Scamacca in the 2022-23 Premier League so far makes for interesting reading.
Antonio has attempted 13 dribbles (2.36 per 90) while Scamacca has five (1.12 per 90). Antonio outperforms his teammate in dribbles completed with seven (1.27) with Scamacca’s four (0.90). When it comes to passes played into the box, Antonio is a clear winner with 16 (2.91), while Scamacca has six (1.35).
Why is this important? It is another reminder of how Antonio can be effective out wide.
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We have already seen Scamacca develop a partnership with fellow newcomer Paqueta. There is no reason why he and Antonio can’t follow suit.
The Jamaica international provided 11 assists in 2021-22, and seven of those were to fellow attackers — Benrahma (three), Bowen and Fornals (two each).
The examples below show Antonio’s effectiveness when operating down the left wing — a position he drifts into anyway in games where he’s deployed as a centre-forward.
Antonio sets up a goal for Tomas Soucek against Wolves in the 1-0 home win in February:
In the 4-1 win away to Watford just after Christmas, Soucek is again calling for the ball…
…but Antonio instead picks out Benrahma, who scores.
Here’s a cross for the same player in the win at Newcastle that kicked off last season…
…that he headed home to start the fightback from 2-1 down at half-time (West Ham won 4-2, and Antonio scored the final goal from a Benrahma assist).
It is unlikely Moyes will start Scamacca and Antonio together in the game tonight (Wednesday) away to in-form Liverpool, where another one-off, one-on second-half change seems the most likely outcome. But he should give it consideration in the back-to-back home games against Bournemouth and Silkeborg that follow.
Those boos in reaction to Scamacca’s withdrawal against Southampton reached decibels Moyes would not have expected.
However, the reality is West Ham could offer so much more as an attacking force with Antonio and Scamacca in the team.
(Top photo: Joe Prior/Visionhaus via Getty Images)