Don’t Let Jarrod Bowen Get Hot; Is West Ham’s Ace Back?

Another match and another appearance on the scoresheet for West Ham’s main man offensively, Jarrod Bowen. With distraction gone and no reinforcement coming for his position, Bowen is refocused and back to populating the scoresheet on a regular basis.

The transfer window has come and gone and West Ham chose not to make many additions to the team despite a few depth departures. For the ever-present right winger in this team, Jarrod Bowen, it’s go time for his midseason resurgence with no one coming for his place.

Now up to eight goals and one assist, Bowen’s seasonal goal return is starting to shape up but that is heavily carried by his three goals in the last two games. A brace against Everton in a powderkeg match and the opening and winning goal against Derby County in the FA Cup have righted the ship for the talisman attacker.

West Ham’s offensive sparkplug, Jarrod Bowen, is showing signs of returning to form once again.

The obvious criticism is there; ‘It’s Everton and Derby, he should be scoring against them, they’re awful.’ Well, he did score against them and the moaners would be moaning even louder if he didn’t score in these matches.

Sure the opposition wasn’t great but these are the matches that the great goalscorers show up in, and carry that momentum forward afterwards. That is what needs to happen with Bowen, who has to carry a lot of the goalscoring weight for this team.

Outside of his on-pitch performances, Bowen missed out on the England team for the World Cup in 2022. His terrific season saw him in the mix but come November he wasn’t playing well enough to earn a position. Manager David Moyes hinted that the pressure to make the England squad may have distracted Bowen and put him off his game. He does seem more relaxed and back to normal now, so maybe Moyes is onto something.

With the devastation of not making the England squad came elation when Bowen and his partner Dani Dyer announced their pregnancy with twins on the way. Bowen promptly netted two goals, one for each kid, after the announcement so there is clear evidence his personal life positivity has translated on the pitch!

For real though, being a father and parent can bring out the best in people. For West Ham supporters, we might be seeing that factor into his relaxed and more natural play after what was surely a stressful few months.

Back to the on-pitch view, the characteristics of Bowen’s game are returning to what they used to be in the 2021/22 season. Bowen usually starts out wide when possession is gained by West Ham but then, once he has passed the ball centrally or it is moved on the opposite wing, he roams centrally like a second striker.

This allows Michail Antonio, who has also turned his form around lately, to get wider or deeper to help build up play in the opponent’s half without the middle of the attack being left vacant. Bowen notched the opener against Derby in this manner on a recycled play that saw him swap positions with Antonio to finish off the Tomas Soucek headed pass.

Dubbed West Ham’s most important player for the second half of the season, Bowen is showing signs of being the sparkplug he regularly has been since joining the Hammers. Distractions now aside, it is an uphill battle for Bowen and West Ham, but with the forward at his best that climb up the table is much easier work.