Expected time Michail Antonio set to be sidelined revealed after horror car crash

He sustained serious leg injuries

The accident was confirmed by West Ham in a statement released by the club on X.

The club initially said: "West Ham United can confirm striker Michail Antonio has today been involved in a road traffic accident. The thoughts and prayers of everyone at the Club are with Michail, his family and friends at this time. The Club will issue an update in due course."

The severity of the accident was underlined by other clubs sending messages of support for the player in the immediate aftermath.

Fortunately, the club later released a statement confirming the forward was in a stable condition and being treated for a leg fracture.

A West Ham spokesman said: “West Ham United can confirm Michail Antonio has undergone surgery on a lower limb fracture following a road traffic accident on Saturday afternoon. Michail will continue to be monitored in hospital over the coming days."

Now, a timeframe has been given on when Antonio can expect to be back playing football, and it's probably sooner than many first thought.

After seeing the images of the crashed car, many believed the Jamaican might never play again, but in fact he has been given a return date of around a year from now.

Considering an ACL injury can often cause a similar expected time out of football, the 34-year-old could be back midway through next season.

Only in the last few hours, the first words of the West Ham striker were revealed by a dog walker who first found the player after his crash.

Samuel Woods, 34, a carer from Regent’s Park, noticed the West Ham star’s crashed vehicle while driving home from walking his dog.

After approaching the car, Woods explained: “I said to him ‘hello’ to see if anyone was alive. I heard sirens and told him that help was on its way. He was so disorientated. He said, ‘Where am I? What’s going on? What car am I in?’"

He added: “The paramedics got there really fast. I couldn’t believe what happened. The car smelt of petrol. I looked at him and thought, ‘He’s in big trouble’.

"I just said, ‘You’ve had an accident’. He didn’t reply. He was looking around trying to make sense of what I just said. He was sitting in the passenger side.”

In a new statement, shared last night, West Ham wrote: "West Ham United can confirm Michail Antonio has undergone surgery on a lower limb fracture following a road traffic accident on Saturday afternoon. Michail will continue to be monitored in hospital over the coming days.

"Everyone at the Club wishes Michail a speedy recovery and wishes to express its sincere gratitude to the football family at large for the overwhelming support shown since yesterday’s news, as well as extending a heartfelt thank you to the emergency services and first responders who attended to Michail in the immediate aftermath of the incident, and the medical team who continue to aid him in his recovery.

"The Club will provide further updates when appropriate."

The Jamaican striker featured in West Ham's 3-1 loss to Leicester City on Tuesday after coming off the bench.

The forward is a popular figure around the East London club, notably being West Ham's all time leading goal scorer in the Premier League.

He has scored 83 goals and assisted 41 in 323 games for the Irons.