Is Antonio stronger than Van Dyk?

When Michail Antonio of Jamaica takes the field with his West Ham United teammates against Liverpool in the English Premier League on Sunday, the burly striker will be able to test his assertion that he is stronger than Liverpool's Dutch defender Virgil van Dijk.

Asked specifically in a recent interview for a strength comparison with the Dutchman, Antonio replied: "No one should be stronger than me. He's strong. He is up there. Fernandinho is strong. Kurt Zouma is a strong guy. But I am talking about who is going to be stronger than me?"

After listing Manchester City captain Fernandinho and his West Ham teammate Zouma, he concluded, "No one is stronger than me."

This confident talk comes just after Antonio was named to Jamaica's squad for two World Cup qualifiers next week. The Reggae Boyz face El Salvador away on November 12 and on November 16, they host the United States at the National Stadium in Kingston.

The 30-year-old Antonio played for Jamaica earlier in the campaign and is again arriving in good form. On October 24, he scored the winner in West Ham's 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur and a week later, he played a key role in the build-up to one of his team's goals in a 4-1 away win at Aston Villa.

According to football analyst Andrew Price, Antonio is an important figure in Jamaica's hunt for goals against El Salvador and the US.

"Antonio has proven quality so definitely he (coach Theodore Whitmore) would want somebody like Michail Antonio, once he's fit, to be available," said Price.

Jamaica has scored just five goals in six World Cup qualifying games so far, with the Antonio withdrawing from some games.

Nevertheless, he became West Ham United's all-time top EPL scorer in August and his goal against Spurs was his 50th in the Premiership. Built to bruise at five feet 11 and 181 pounds, Antonio is fast, can hold the ball while teammates arrive from midfield and has a powerful right foot-footer.

He has already scored six times this season despite missing some games as West Ham United coach David Moyes paced him past his injuries.

The Antonio-van Dijk match-up will take place in London, with Liverpool second on the EPL table with 22 points and Antonio's Hammers fourth on 20 points.