Former West Ham striker Michail Antonio in talks over Charlton return after near fatal car crash

Antonio potentially set to return

Per BBC Sport, Antonio has held exploratory talks with Charlton over the prospect of a sensational return to professional football. The forward has not played competitively in England since December 2024, after a car crash left him with multiple leg fractures.

Antonio's vehicle collided with a tree after leaving Hammers training. He had to be cut from the wreckage and was airlifted to hospital. Once in medical care, the veteran frontman underwent emergency surgery on his broken leg

It was suggested at the time that Antonio may struggle to walk again, never mind kick a ball around. He was, however, able to make remarkable progress in his recovery and returned to international action with Jamaica in June 2025. Now, he is potentially closing in on a comeback in England.

Antonio's incredible recovery

Antonio briefly trained at Leicester City to aid his recovery, although he did not end up joining the Foxes.

He told TNT Sports recently of wanting to land another contract: "I wasn’t done with football and I didn't want my career to be finished literally in a car crash.

"The very first thing is, as soon as I could speak to the doctor, the first thing I said to him was, ‘Am I going to play again?’, and from him saying to me, ‘Yes’, that was me, no problem, that’s all I need to know. I knew I had more in me and I knew I’ve still got more in me."

He added on his experience with the Reggae Boyz: "I was back on the pitch within six months. I played a couple of games for Jamaica in June. Still to this day it burns me.

"The first time I get on the pitch, there was a time where a player at Jamaica, he’s gone through, I’m standing open goal, all he needed to do was roll me the ball. I was screaming at him. Let me have this moment, first game back, comeback story, it’s written in the stars. He missed and you know the worst thing about it? He missed it and it goes half a yard behind me. I’m stretching my leg, I’m stretching my leg so much just to get a touch but it goes behind me."

Antonio's injury extent

Antonio told the BBC about his recovery: "I shattered my femur bone in four different places.

"I had one single keyhole surgery. They put a pole in my thigh with four bolts, so screws and bolts to knit it back together.

"My first surgeon said he didn't want me to put any weight on my leg for three months, which is around about now, and you can see that I am walking.

"We got a second specialist who said I needed to start putting weight on it, increasing from 10% up to 100% within three weeks.

"But I kept my crutches for a further two weeks. Overall, they say it will be between six to 12 months before my leg starts healing properly."

He confirmed in August that he had begun talks over a return. Speaking to talkSPORT, Antonio said: "I'm speaking to clubs right now to see where the best offer is for me to go, and we'll just see how it goes.

"To be honest, there's a mixture [of different clubs], we're talking to clubs here, we're talking to clubs abroad, but I'm going to leave it very vague - talk to clubs in England and abroad."

What comes next?

Antonio will hope to earn his permanent contract as he bids to come back. Charlton currently sit 18th in the Championship and play Portsmouth on Tuesday.