Michail Antonio’s former manager wipes away tears to send emotional tribute after horror Ferrari crash which saw West Ham star smash into a tree on his way back from training

Michail Antonio’s old boss has paid a heartbreaking tribute to the West Ham striker after he crashed his Ferrari into a tree on the way back from training.

The 34-year-old Jamaican international underwent surgery for a broken leg this weekend after the accident.

The collision happened on Saturday afternoon when Antonio crashed his silver Ferrari in Epping Forest, Essex, leaving the striker in the passenger seat.

The footballer was trapped for more than 45 minutes when firefighters tried to free him from his car.

West Ham confirmed on Saturday evening that Antonio was in a stable condition after being taken to hospital. A further statement on Sunday confirmed he had undergone surgery.

Now his former manager Martin Allen, who coached him when he was on loan from Reading to Cheltenham Town in 2009, has sent an emotional tribute to the star.

He posted on X on Saturday: ‘Michail Antonio has been fantastic for West Ham over the last few years. I loaned him out and took him to London to see his family after the games.

‘He’s a diamond guy and after wiping away a few tears, I hope he makes a full recovery.’

A day later, he suggested the shocking incident could help a struggling Hammers side move forward in their crucial position Premier League collide with Wolves on Monday, say: ‘Today would have been a very tough day on the training field. The shock of a teammate in the hospital.

‘It will be tough for the players and the manager to mentally prepare for this match.

‘Let’s hope MA [Michail Antonio] can be inspiring for all of us supporters, his teammates and the manager.”

Shortly afterwards he added: ‘West Ham United win tomorrow night. I’m sure this tough weekend will encourage the players, manager and staff.

“Even after a testing period, I think the West Ham United supporters will unite and do everything they can to support the players and the manager. It must be so.’

A West Ham statement after the crash read: ‘West Ham can confirm that Michail Antonio underwent surgery on Saturday afternoon for a lower limb fracture following a road accident.

‘Michail will be further monitored in hospital in the coming days.

‘Everyone at the club wishes Michail a speedy recovery and would like to express their sincere thanks to the football family at large for the overwhelming support since yesterday’s news, and also extend a sincere thank you to the emergency services and first responders who attended Michail in the immediate aftermath of the incident, and the medical team who continue to assist him in his recovery.”

As reported by The sunAntonio’s first words after the crash were: ‘Where am I? What’s going on? What car am I in?’

Samuel Woods was driving home after walking his dog in Epping Forest and saw the car on the side of the road.

He told The Sun: ‘I said ‘hello’ to him to see if anyone was still alive. I heard sirens and told him help was on the way. He was so disoriented. He said, “Where am I? What’s going on? What car am I in?”

‘The ambulance crew arrived very quickly. I couldn’t believe what happened. The car smelled of gasoline.”

Woods stated that Antonio, whose former clubs include Nottingham Forest and Sheffield Wednesday, was unable to understand what he had heard.

Woods said: ‘I looked at him and thought, ‘He’s in big trouble.’

“I just said, ‘You’ve had an accident.’ He didn’t answer. He looked around trying to understand what I just said. He was on the passenger side.”

Essex Police confirmed they were launching an investigation into the incident which took place on Coppice Row in Epping just before 1pm and appealed for witnesses to assist their investigation into what is believed to be a single vehicle collision.

On Christmas Day 2019, Antonio crashed his Lamborghini in Balham while dressed as a snowman.

Antonio previously talked about the financial consequences of the crash.

“This year I had trouble getting insurance,” he said three years ago. ‘Nobody wanted to insure me!

‘I had to go to a specialist insurance company, so my insurance this year is madness! I now have a G63. They offered me £10,000 for one [Audi] A3 to insure, or buy a G63 and pay double the price but drive a G63 instead of an A3.

‘I’d rather pay €20,000 and drive a G63 than pay €10,000 and drive an A3. It was Christmas Day. It still hurts me to this day. I miss that car. Actually I was driving, but it was a slippery road.

‘In the car it turns nicely and holds the road well, so I was doing 30-55 km/h on a 50 km/h road. Since there are corners in it, I think I don’t have to break, I just go around the corner like I always do.

‘But when I turn the corner, it skids. So while he’s skidding, I fuck myself and hit the brakes – the worst thing you can do on ice when you’re just accelerating when you’re supposed to just keep going.

‘So I hit the brakes, skidded and went onto the curb – but I can’t really remember, everything just happened so quickly.

‘Then there’s smoke coming out of the front of the car and the engine is in the back, so I think, ‘the car’s going to explode!’, even though it’s just the airbags. So I have to jump out of the passenger side of the little car. It’s madness.

“And the thing is, I was in a snowman costume too. I don’t understand why I didn’t get it out of there and fix it.”

The striker has made 323 appearances and scored 83 goals since joining West Ham in 2015. He is their all-time top scorer in the Premier League.

He has been a mainstay for the Irons this season, but has scored just once in 15 appearances.