sport news Michail Antonio admits West Ham needed to be 'more clinical' after fighting ... trends now 'We made it difficult for ourselves': Match-winner Michail Antonio admits West Ham needed to be 'more clinical' after fighting back to beat AZ Alkmaar in their Europa Conference League semi-final first leg By Michael Pavitt For Mailonline Published: 23:05 BST, 11 May 2023 | Updated: 23:06 BST, 11 May 2023 Viewcomments Michail Antonio admitted West Ham made hard work of their Europa Conference League semi-final first leg against AZ Alkmaar after being forced to come from behind to earn a 2-1 win against the Dutch outfit. Tijjani Reijnders had given the visitors a first-half lead at the London Stadium, with the midfielder's effort beating Alphonse Areola from 25 yards. A second half penalty from Said Benrahma levelled the tie, before Antonio scored from close range in the 75th minute after Nayef Aguerd's header was blocked on the line. Match-winner Antonio praised the Hammers from overcoming the early setback to earn a narrow advantage heading into the second leg next week. ‘It was hard work, from watching what they’ve done doing over the past week we knew they would play good football,' Antonio told BT Sport. Michail Antonio scored the winning goal for West Ham to give the hosts a narrow lead in the tie Antonio scored from close range as West Ham came from behind to beat AZ Alkmaar ‘We made it difficult for ourselves. We need to be a bit more clinical but we’ll take the 2-1 to their place. ‘We know they are a possession based team. They know how to work it so we decided we would try and press them. ‘We believed in ourselves and got the two goals. ‘It dropped down for me perfectly. I don’t think I had the best of games but I got the goal. ‘I got the goal, we got the win and we move on to next week.’ The result keeps West Ham's aim of winning a first European trophy since 1965 on track. The Hammers last triumph in Europe when they beat 1860 Munich to clinch the European Cup Winners' Cup. David Moyes side will travel to Alkmaar next week seeking to book a place in the Europa Conference League final. The winners of the tie will face either Fiorentina or Basel in the final in Prague. Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility