Michail Antonio says Nottingham Forest will 'always' have a fond place in his heart ahead of Saturday's Premier League meeting at the London Stadium.
The 32-year-old spent a season at the City Ground between 2014 and 2015 before joining the Hammers. While it might have been a brief time Trentside for Antonio, he scored 19 goals and contributed 15 assists in 54 appearances for the Reds.
Saturday's 3pm kick-off between the sides will be Antonio's second meeting with Forest this season, almost eight years after he left the club in a near £2m deal.
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The Jamaica international has now spoken about his time at the City Ground and how he remains fond of the club. "I had a great time at Nottingham Forest," he told West Ham's official website.
"I loved every moment of being in that club, but obviously, when the Premier League comes calling you have to answer! It’s always got a fond place in my heart, I've always looked out for their scores to see how they're doing, and when I saw that they got promoted I was buzzing for them.
"It was more that the fans were amazing, and you can see how they are now when you go to Forest’s ground, and the people I was playing with and the staff."
The 32-year-old also holds a special friendship with some players. "Jesse Lingard, Andre Ayew and Cheikhou Kouyate are there," he added. "I love Cheikhou, he is a great character, and to be fair, I hung around with Andre quite a bit and we went to France together one weekend, just to have some nice food and a night out in Paris. That was nice, to experience a new place.
"Andre’s character is a bit like [former West Ham star]Marko Arnautovic's. Because he’s very confident in himself, people might take it as arrogance, but actually he’s a really nice guy. And then obviously, Jesse is an actual legend. I saw him recently at a concert and really get along with him as well, but when you’re an easy-going person, everyone likes you!"
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