Michail Antonio has enjoyed his recent trips to Carrow Road.
Two seasons ago, the forward netted all four goals for West Ham United in a 4-0 win against Norwich City, helping the Irons pull away from the relegation zone.
Less than two years later, Antonio would once again find the net against the Canaries on the road, helping the Hammers to another 4-0 win and continue the pursuit of European football for a second consecutive campaign.
“The goal itself was about two-and-a-half yards out, an open net and no one to stop me. It was beautiful. Those are the ones you enjoy. I’d rather have that than a 40-yarder!” Antonio smiled.
“The last two times I’ve been here, I’ve been able to get a couple. Today I was hoping to get a couple, but I didn’t manage to because obviously I had to come off at half-time. I definitely enjoy coming here.”
The forward’s close-range goal came in a first half that also saw Saïd Benrahma net twice from the left flank, while Manuel Lanzini found the bottom right corner from the penalty spot in the second half.
Antonio’s finish against Norwich was his ninth of the season in the Premier League but a first in the English top flight since January, and the No9 admitted to being disappointed with his recent league tally.
The striker was thrilled to be back among the goals and is optimistic of scoring even more in the final two games of the campaign.
He continued: “It had been weighing on my mind, to be fair. It’s been four months and, as a striker, you want to be involved in the goals. Especially with how I started the season as well – I thought I would be on a few more goals than I’m on right now.
“It is a bit disappointing but it’s been a long, hard season. I’ve enjoyed it, we’ve done well, and we’ve had some great achievements. Hopefully I can keep scoring in the last couple of games.”
Victory over Norwich City puts the Hammers on 55 points in seventh in the Premier League, just three points behind sixth-placed Manchester United with a game in hand.
Antonio says the team is driven to overtake the Red Devils in the final two games of the season and claim a spot in the 2022/23 UEFA Europa League group stages.
“We’ve gone so hard today because we believe we can pip Manchester United to sixth,” he added. “We believe we can do it.
“As much as we’ve had a lot of football this year, we’ve had a lot of fights and, in terms of getting into the Europa League next year, it’s not over.”
