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Michail Antonio’s departure to play for Jamaica in the CONCACAF Nations League could not have come at a worse time for both the player and the club.

The “Reggae Boyz” are set to face Nicaragua and Honduras over the next two weeks, and Antonio is a crucial part of a team currently sitting in second place.

I’m not entirely sure whether it’s my memory playing tricks on me, but it always seems that international football comes at a bad time for Antonio. Just when the West Ham forward appears to be hitting his stride and finding form, he flies across the Atlantic to represent Jamaica and returns home tired.

Perhaps it’s jet lag, or maybe it’s just age, but Antonio seems to need three or four games to re-acclimatise to the pace of the Premier League upon his return.

Mikey was exceptional against Ipswich in West Ham’s 4-1 win yesterday, scoring and creating goals while proving to be quite a menace. Antonio was so good that if the Hammers had a game next week, I suspect he’d keep a fit Niclas Füllkrug out of the side.

There is always a fear of injury when any player leaves for international duty, but with Antonio, it’s different. It’s not just a worry that he’ll return to Rush Green injured, but more that he’ll need easing back into the team at a time when he has just hit his top level.

Hopefully, I’m proven wrong and have nothing to worry about, but Julen Lopetegui was also concerned about the situation when speaking about his departing players.

With international breaks punctuating two-week gaps in the season in September, October, and November, it’s not going to get better any time soon. So, fingers crossed that Antonio returns home in exactly the same shape and form as he left.