Jarrod Bowen opens up on England World Cup heartache amid return to form for West Ham United
Jarrod Bowen has admitted his performances for West Ham United dipped in the first half of the season due to the looming possibility of going to the World Cup with England, he told the club.
The Hammers forward scored just two goals and provided no assists prior to the Qatar World Cup, and this ultimately cost him his chance of adding to his four England caps already picked up under Gareth. Southgate.
However, since the World Cup hiatus, the 26-year-old has returned to form in style, netting a crucial brace in the win over relegation rivals Everton and netting in the FA Cup tie against Derby County.
He told West Ham’s official website (Thursday 9 February): “I spoke recently about my disappointment of missing out on the England squad for the World Cup and it was a massive, but it’s something I have learned from.
“As much as we’re professionals and we’re meant to be just football, football, football, and it’s a given that we turn up every week and play our hearts out, sometimes when you want something to happen and it’s so close, it can affect you more than you actually realise.
“Of course, I was trying to put it to the back of my mind and just play my game, but I think there were some aspects where I was probably trying to do a bit too much and that was affecting my performances for the Club, which was the most disappointing thing.
“Since we’ve been back, I think I’ve been back to myself and playing at a level where I’m happy and I’ve scored a few goals as well.”
Pivotal
Bowen is quite simply an integral part of Moyes’ set-up at the London Stadium, and his return to form couldn’t have come at a better time for the Scot.
With both January recruit Danny Ings and Gianluca Scamacca having been on the sidelines in recent weeks, the mantle has fallen to Bowen, and he has delivered the goods in stunning fashion.
His brace against the Toffees, followed by his opener in the FA Cup tie against Derby, kickstarted a return to form for the rest of Moyes’ side, and the performance against Newcastle was evidence of this.
If the attacker can pick up his form from last season, he should certainly be in Southgate’s thinking for upcoming England squads, as he possesses the quality to impact games both from the first whistle and from the bench as an impact substitute.
Although the Three Lions have a stacked front line in the likes of Phil Foden, Jadon Sancho, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford, Bowen could well sneak into upcoming squads if others fall out of form.