Chelsea and Conte line up West Ham’s Antonio for surprise January move

Michail Antonio could be set for a stunning switch across London, with Chelsea tipped to make a move for the West Ham star.

The Sun are reporting that the versatile Englishman has become a surprise inclusion on Blues boss Antonio Conte’s transfer wishlist.

And a January move isn’t out of the question.

In a trying season for West Ham, Antonio has been a rare highlight, notching eight goals.

The 26-year-old has also proven his commitment by playing in three positions for Slaven Bilic this term; centre-forward, wing-back and right-back.

The Hammers signed Antonio in the 2015 summer window for £7m from Nottingham Forest, and the former Reading man signed a contract extension six months ago.

Now valued at over £11m by transfermarkt.co.uk, and with an agreeement with the Irons running until 2020, Antonio could command a fee well over £20m.

That would smash the east Londoner’s current record sale of £18m from Leeds United for Rio Ferdinand in 2000.

A trio of wins over the festive period has eased the Hammers’ relegation concerns, but it remains to be seen if they would consider selling their most potent marksman mid-season.

And it’s not as if Chelsea urgently need to spend this month, with Conte leading his side to a record-equalling 13 straight Premier League wins in a single campaign.

The Blues could set a new record tonight, but they’ll need to win at Tottenham to do so.

And with the hosts enjoying their own five-game winning streak, the bookies make a Chelsea win far from certain at 17/10.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing