Actor Danny Dyer, the father of Dani, who is Mrs Bowen-to-be, once joked he loved Jarrod Bowen more than his wife. West Ham United head coach Julen Lopetegui may not quite agree but he can attribute his extended stay at the helm to Bowen’s brilliance.
The England international scored the solitary goal in an uninspiring win against Southampton and was the man of the match. When Lopetegui urged for much-needed inspiration against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Bowen answered the call with the winning goal. Were it not for his strike cannoning off the crossbar in the 1-1 draw against Bournemouth, the winger would have scored three goals in his last four games.
The 28-year-old has registered five goals and four assists in 18 league games this season. Bowen has also played a key role in the club’s four-game unbeaten run, easing the pressure on an embattled Lopetegui, who needs to preside over a strong second half to the season.
There are many variables at stake — from potential European qualification to convincing transfer targets to join — but perhaps the most crucial thing is to persuade key players Bowen, Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta that they can achieve their goals at West Ham.
“Our ambition as a club is qualifying for Europe every year,” Bowen outlined in his post-match interview with broadcaster Amazon Prime.
He is not wrong. A summer expenditure of more than £120million ($150m) on nine players was supposed to boost their surge for a European berth. However, a lack of consistency and identity has seen West Ham move ponderously towards fulfilling that objective.
West Ham fended off interest from Crystal Palace in January 2020 to sign Bowen from Hull City for around £18million. The attacker has since scored 66 goals across 222 appearances and his transfer value has rocketed. He is second (48) in the list of West Ham’s all-time Premier League scorers, with only Michail Antonio scoring more (68), and Bowen’s goal against Southampton was his 100th in the top four divisions of English football.
Bowen signed a seven-year contract extension in October 2023. The long-term deal, which does not include a release clause, underlined his importance to the team and saw Bowen become one of West Ham’s highest earners. He has referenced why he wants to retire at the London Stadium and other factors behind extending his loyalty.
Crucially, it put to bed murmurs over Bowen’s future. He was linked with a move to Liverpool but they never made a formal enquiry. Next summer they may renew their interest should Mohamed Salah depart upon the expiry of his contract. If doubts over Bowen’s ability persists, it would be foolhardy to maintain that same belief in 2025.These past 12 months, he has elevated his game to another level. In February, he scored his first career hat-trick against Brentford. Two months later, he became the first West Ham player to score 20 goals or more in a season since Teddy Sheringham and Marlon Harewood both did it in 2004-05.
Bowen also equalled Paolo Di Canio’s record (16) for the most goals by a West Ham player in a single Premier League season. In June, the forward was named in England’s European Championship squad and fulfilled a childhood dream of scoring his first England goal against the Republic of Ireland in November. The list of achievements is as packed as Bowen’s scoring record this year.
Pre-match, Lopetegui urged his players to be main actors. If West Ham’s performance against Southampton were a movie, there would be few standout moments but the end credits would read, “Jarrod Bowen and cast.” He continues to excel.I had a feeling I was going to score today,” he told Amazon Prime. “When the ball is in the box, it’s just about anticipation and trying to be on the front foot. When (Niclas) Fullkrug headed it, I knew I would get a toe on it enough for it to go in.
“I didn’t know (that I had scored my 100th goal). When you play you just want to score as many goals as possible. Then when you retire you look back at how many goals you’ve scored. I love scoring goals for this club and here’s to many more.
“A lot of things happened today from losing Maximilian (Kilman) and Lukasz (Fabianski) through injury really early. But full credit to the whole squad because everyone is ready to come on. This is a reliant group.”
It is Bowen who has helped foster that environment. One of Lopetegui’s first acts was to appoint the forward as captain. In the past 10 days, he has shown endearing qualities by giving a young fan his shirt and meeting Archie, a supporter born with cerebral palsy.Bowen is very unassuming but knows when it is appropriate to strike a different chord. This month, Bowen, Danny Ings, Kilman and Aaron Cresswell had to decide who was the most annoying in training. They were unanimous: it was Bowen. His demands have led to an unbeaten run, which has been crucial for Lopetegui’s future.
Bowen’s love for West Ham continues to grow. His winner against Fiorentina in the 2023 Europa Conference League final shows what he can do on a European stage. West Ham need to show they can match Bowen’s ambitions by returning there.