West Ham striker Mikhail Antonio jokingly claims he will ‘fight a referee’ if they ‘impose 15 minutes of stoppage time’
Mikhail Antonio and Callum Wilson have jokingly expressed their views on the radical new approach to stoppage time in English football, with the West Ham striker claiming that ‘players are not robots’.
Football lawmakers are encouraging referees to add more minutes to EFL and Premier League matches for mid-match breaks to avoid wasting time.
It comes after matches at the 2022 Qatar World Cup lasted over 100 minutes, including England’s 117-minute match against Iran, with officials expecting top-flight matches to go into triple figures this season as a new norm.
Manchester City remained on a 1-1 draw with Arsenal in normal time after Leandro Trossard nullified Cole Palmer’s second half in the 101st minute of the Community Shield last week.
Michael Antonio (left) has spoken about English football’s new guideline to introduce longer periods of stoppage time, jokingly claiming that ‘players are not robots’
Speaking on a new BBC podcast, The Players Channel, he was joined by Callum Wilson (pictured), who also added that the new rules could be good for those on the bench
Arsenal went on to win 4–1 on penalties, while several opening round matches of Premier League and EFL fixtures featured long periods of extra time.
The new guidelines have divided opinion among some, with Kevin de Bruyne and Raphael Varane both decrying the new rules, with the Man United defender claiming he was concerned about the burnout this increase in stoppage time could cause.
And it seems West Ham striker Antonio agrees with the Frenchman, jokingly claiming players need rest.
“Don’t they know this is a quick game, like we need the rest. We’re not robots mate,” the 33-year-old said of the new rules on the new podcast, The football channel.
‘Imagine you’re 5-0 down and they (the referees) have won 15 minutes (injury time) – I’m fighting the referee. I fight with him. We’re going to bang,’ he added jokingly.
“I don’t play anymore. Blow the whistle mate. Manchester City gets an extra 15 minutes. Oh my God.’
Wilson interjected with a laugh: “They can score four, five goals in that time.”
Antonio: ‘There will definitely be double figures this year.
But Wilson, who notably scored in Newcastle’s 5-1 win against Aston Villa this weekend, jokingly added that there could be some benefits to more stoppage time, especially if you start on the bench.
“But don’t you think as strikers you would lick your lips,” Wilson added, to which Antonio replied, “100 percent.”
‘For me, when someone says, ‘more minutes,’ I think ‘Boy!’
“Even if I’m on the bench now and then, which will eventually happen, if you fill in after 60 minutes, at least you know I’m getting 45!” he added with a laugh.
After Man City’s defeat on the shield of the community, Pep Guardiola particularly expressed his contempt for the new rulessuggesting that a basketball-type shot clock should be used instead of 100-minute games.
Manchester City were held to an equalizer in this month’s FA Community Shield match after Leandro Trossard scored in the 101st minute of stoppage time
Meanwhile, Raphael Varane is one of the players speaking out about the new rules, expressing his concerns about players getting burnt out.
He said: ‘Players are treated like numbers. It’s not going to change, it’s just getting worse.
“Many players asked me ‘give me more days off, Pep’, but I said I couldn’t. We have to go to Asia (on tour) and the club has to pay our salaries, and then we have the Community Shield.’
“I don’t know how we can last 11 months,” he added.
“I did it a long time ago in Barcelona, but the Spanish league is not that demanding. I don’t know what’s going to happen. We’re going to drop off, that’s for sure.’
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