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Antonio at his Dirty Dancing-inspired party: "I wanted to be Baby, but I'm 94.9kg"
Michail Antonio is the only West Ham Premier League scorer who stands out - so it was appropriate that he performed a solo dance under the London Stadium lights Monday.
After scoring his 48th top flight goal in a 4-1 win against Leicester, the striker celebrated surpassing Paolo di Canio’s record by dancing with, lifting, and kissing a Michail Anton cardboard cut-out.
It was a Hollywood moment for the player who wore the number nine shirt. He will be remembered for his scoring feats in West Ham folklore.
"We were speaking earlier in the week and I said, 'You know what will make the most memorable celebration? Antonio extended his record to 49 with the fourth goal of his team's side.
"Maybe someone could pick me up as Baby?" But I made a cardboard cut out and picked it up."
He may have been in a delirium after becoming a record-breaker, so it is possible that he was confused. Antonio's dance-themed movies, Baby and the iconic lift are both from the 1980 blockbuster Dirty Dancing, rather than 2001’s Save The Last Dance.
David Moyes, his manager, was not impressed by the celebrations regardless of the film that inspired it.
He said, "It's something I don't like."
West Ham's top Premier League goalscorers 49 - Michail Antonio 47 - Paolo di Canio 46 - Mark Noble 41 - Carlton Cole 37 - Trevor Sinclair 33 - Andy Carroll 29 - Frederic Kanoute 24 - John Hartson 24 - Frank Lampard 23 - Tony Cottee
Antonio's performance was a pleasant surprise for the former Manchester United boss.
Moyes said, "I'm really happy." "I was disappointed by the way he played the first half, but he did enough for me to shut down the manager after I told him at half-time."
The 31-year old's goals, both of which came in the final ten minutes of the match, were outstanding. He spun Caglar Syuncu and then slotted home. The second goal saw him flip the ball over two defenders and finally stab home.
Chris Sutton, a BBC Radio 5 Live pundit, said that Michael Antonio was "unplayable". He was at London Stadium. "This was a masterclass. It was a perfect, centre-forward performance."
Antonio stated: "It's beautiful to be West Ham's premier league scorer." It was a problem in the first half. But, the gaffer could me at half-time so I played normal and got my goals.
West Ham 4-1 Leicester: David Moyes lauds Michail Antonio for an 'incredible evening'
We will be pointing out that Antonio's record was only for the Premier League era. Vic Watson scored 298 league goals between 1920 and 1935 for West Ham (326 in all competitions).
Geoff Hurst scored 180 league goals (including 249 in all competitions), with many other players surpassing the 100 mark. Antonio scored 51 goals in all West Ham competitions.
He was West Ham's top or joint top scorer in the last two seasons and 2016-17. He has taken 11 more shots than anyone else in the Premier League this year.
Many strikers have been and gone over the years, including Jordan Hugill and Albian Ajeti, Lucas Perez and Sebastien Haller, Javier Hernandez, Marko Arnautovic, and Sebastien Halter.
Antonio's accomplishments are even more impressive when you consider his football career.
He has never played international soccer at any level and began his career in football with Tooting & Mitcham United, the Isthmian League Premier Division.
From Nottingham Forest, he joined West Ham in 2015 as a winger. He finished his first season as a right-back.
He said, "I'm not happy achieving just one goal." "I don’t want anyone to catch me before I leave here. "I want to remain up there in folklore for all time."
