Although spending most of December in hospital, Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz forward Michail Antonio is in good spirits and expected to be around the squad in the near future, says West Ham United goalkeeper Lukas Fabianksi.

The Jamaican international is in hospital recovering from surgery following a car crash on December 7 in Essex.

Emergency services in the area took nearly an hour to get him from the badly damaged vehicle. He was transported to a central London hospital for treatment.

He sustained significant injuries, including a lower limb fracture which forced him to undergo surgery, but was declared to be conscious and in stable condition.

West Ham paid tribute to the 34-year-old, who joined the club in 2015, in their English Premier League fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers at the London Stadium as the players wore “Antonio 9” during the warm-up and the supporters of both clubs gave him a minute’s applause.

Earlier this month, manager Julen Lopetegui revealed that the players and staff would attempt to visit Antonio in hospital.

Fabianksi says it was great to see his teammate in a positive condition.

“We’ve constantly been in touch with [Michail], he’s now in a really good spirits. Me, personally, have been able to see him in the hospital, have a chat with him and spend some time with him. A few other boys did as well, we’ve been on video calls with him as well so he’s in really good spirits. I think we’re all just happy and thankful that, in the end, he’s okay. That’s the main thing,” he told Sky Sports.

Antonio, the club’s record goal scorer in the Premier League with 68 goals in 268 appearances, is expected to be released from hospital in January.

However, he’s expected to miss the remainder of the club’s season and could be out for the majority of 2025 as his recovery from leg surgery could take as long as 12 months.

Fabianksi, though, says the club will remain patient and is eager for his return.

“We miss him obviously as a player because he’s a big player for us, his personality, his presence on the pitch and off the pitch is amazing for this football club. I think we all just can’t wait to see him back, having him around the squad but lucky everything is fine and I think that’s the main thing. He’ll be back for sure on the pitch,” said Fabianksi.

West Ham are currently 14th in the league on 23 points.

Along with his club absence, Antonio will also be missed internationally as he is likely to be ruled out of Jamaica’s two remaining games in the second round of World Cup qualifying next June against British Virgin Islands and Guatemala. He is to also miss the final round of qualifying set for September 2025, with Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz currently occupying one of the two automatic spots.

Antonio is set to miss out on Jamaica’s home and away tie against St Vincent and the Grenadine in March for the qualifiers for the Concacaf Gold Cup. He would also miss the Gold Cup set for June 14 to July 6, 2025 in the United States and Canada.

Antonio has five goals in 21 appearances for the Reggae Boyz with his last appearance coming in a 0-0 result against Honduras in October at the National Stadium in the team’s final Concacaf Nations League A group game.

Suspension and an issue with travel documents prevented him from playing in the Nations League quarter-finals against the USA last month.