After a solid season at West Ham, the 24-year-old is being cast as a potential Liverpool signing.
If you’d asked Liverpool fans to put their collective heads together and compile a list of potential or probable targets for the club this summer, there’s a good chance that West Ham’s 24-year-old English forward Jarrod Bowen wouldn’t have been on it.
That’s where we find ourselves today, though, with a slew of reports linking the Reds with Bowen. The Athletic’s James Pearce says he’s on the shortlist, TalkSport says there’s interest, and The Express say Jürgen Klopp has made a personal plea for his signing.
As for the player, while he may have gone rather under the radar for many, Bowen looked to take a major step forward on the pitch with the Hammers last season, making 40 total appearances with eight goals and six assists across all competitions.
He joined West Ham from Hull City in January after tearing up the Championship in the first half—he had 16 goals and six assists in 29 games in 2019-20 before that move—and then spent the first six months following his £25M move adjusting to the new league.
Given the price West Ham paid for him just 18 months ago, that last season seemed to show that he can deliver in the top flight—albeit not quite at his Championship levels, at least not yet—and his English status, though, Bowen would not come cheap.
That will have some raising their eyebrows at the seemingly widespread rumours, including from journalists with ties to the club, linking a player who would arrive as fifth choice behind Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané, and Diogo Jota.
Regardless whether Bowen is a legitimate target or his name simply a distraction, that he would likely only be signed if the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri and Divock Origi were to depart suggests a few more outgoings may be on the horizon.
