Tomas Soucek dedicated his goal in West Ham’s crucial 2-1 win over Wolves to Michail Antonio – and revealed the players had a video call with their injured team-mate before Monday’s game.
The Hammers forward, 34, remains in hospital after being involved in a car crash on Saturday.
Antonio underwent surgery on Sunday on a lower limb fracture and will continue to receive care over the coming days.
Soucek and Jarrod Bowen scored as West Ham overcame Wolves for a vital victory to move nine points clear of the relegation zone and ease the pressure on under-fire head coach Julen Lopetegui.
When asked about Antonio, midfielder Soucek told Sky Sports: “The goal was for him. I said before the game I really wanted to score even more today.
“He’s been here since I came here – he is really my favourite. I said it would be tough for me to play without him.
“I am happy that he is doing fine, but this is for him. He is a massive player and he is in my heart.”
The 29-year-old Czech international was worried when he heard the news of Antonio’s accident as he added: “It was really tough for us. I was with the kids and I saw this information on the phone. I messaged everyone asking what happened and how he was.
“I was so scared what was going to happen. It was a really tough week for him, his family and us.
“We had a video call with him, the whole team, before the game. He smiled to us and gave us all the best. I can’t wait to visit him. He is a really lovely guy and also funny. He even made a few jokes before the game and he wished us all the best.”
Jamaica international Antonio is West Ham’s all-time leading scorer in the Premier League, with 68 goals in 268 league appearances.
Soucek held up nine fingers, representing Antonio’s shirt number, when celebrating his opener against second-bottom Wolves, while captain Bowen held up Antonio’s shirt too after netting the 72nd-minute winner.
Antonio joined the club in 2015 and Soucek added: “He is probably one of the best players West Ham have had.
“He will be soon with us. These things can happen, but hopefully he will be even better soon.”
