The £60m battle for Bowen: How Everton can beat Liverpool to sign West Ham’s talisman
Whatever the outcome of the Premier League’s unpredictable two-horse race to the bottom – and whichever London club find themselves cursed most vehemently by the VAR gods, apparently a likely deciding factor – the future of Jarrod Bowen could lie away from West Ham. One of the summer’s biggest transfer battles is just starting to warm up.
According to a report from The Daily Mail, Bowen may be permitted to leave the London Stadium regardless of whether his side survive or not, with an alleged asking price of £60m. The supposed runners and riders: Liverpool, Newcastle and Everton, the latter demonstrating admirable ambition.
Now 29 years old and entering what may prove to be the last years of his prime, Bowen is a prove threat in the final third, a guaranteed sticking plaster for a side which issues up front. But which of the clubs chasing him would suit him best? And where is he likely to end up at the end of the summer if he does depart West Ham?
Liverpool, Newcastle… Everton? The clubs in the chase for Jarrod Bowen
While Bowen has never publicly provided any kind of indication that he wants to leave West Ham this summer, the speculation will likely persist regardless of their final league position. Players of his calibre seldom stay at struggling clubs for too long, especially when they’re in the midst of their best years.
It’s not surprising to see Liverpool’s name in the mix. They’re long-term admirers who have never made a move for Bowen largely because he would have been competing for Mohamed Salah’s position. With the Egyptian on his way out at the end of the season, that obstacle has been removed, and Liverpool’s need for a goalscoring right winger has surged.
Newcastle make plenty of sense as a suitor, too. They may have had a bad year but still have the veneer of a club that can challenge for cups and top four placings, having achieved both over the last few seasons. With Anthony Gordon looking quite likely to leave for Bayern Munich, they will need wingers and will have cash burning a hole in their pocket – and right wing has been a headache for some time even if Gordon ends up staying.
Everton being in the race feels a little more surprising, but David Moyes was in charge at the London Stadium when the Hammers signed Bowen and after a strong first season under their new owners (and in their new ground), there may be an appetite to show some uncharacteristic ambition in the transfer market – while they too could lose a key attacking player, with Iliman Ndiaye on a couple of different clubs’ shortlists.
Assuming The Mail’s list of candidates is broadly accurate, it’s an interesting mixture of teams who are ascending and descending, whose prospects of winning trophies over the next two or three seasons are difficult to gauge. One would assume that the chance to upscale a relatively slim trophy case would be at the forefront of Bowen’s mind.
If that is the case then Liverpool would surely have the edge. Arne Slot’s difficult second season may have taken the shine off of their Premier League title but they have the resources, talent and recent track record to suggest that they would be Bowen’s best bet for a medal or two. They can also, most likely at least, outspend their apparent rivals. £60m is probably affordable for all three teams to some degree, but Liverpool would likely be able to stump up for the biggest salary.
Certainly it’s hard to imagine that Everton would be able to compete with their cross-city rivals on paper. Their best bet is to hope that Liverpool look elsewhere, which is hardly inconceivable given that they appear to be making a conscious effort to make their squad younger as they rebuild. Buying Bowen, at 29, would mark a departure.
Still, he is a player they’ve monitored for years and seems like a near-perfect fit for their need – a wide forward who can not only trouble defenders and create chances, but score plenty of his own. Salah’s sharp decline robbed them of a key part of their attacking output, and Bowen is as safe a bet as there will be to replicate that, even if his ceiling is plainly not as high as the Egyptian’s once was.
Newcastle, meanwhile, probably present the middle ground option. It’s scarcely inconceivable that they would challenge for the top four next season, or have a reasonable crack at a cup competition. They don’t have Liverpool’s pedigree in that regard, but have more than Everton. And not only do they sorely need new wingers, but need ones who can get inside and link up effectively with their centre-forward. That’s been a problem all year.
All told, it’s hard to look past Liverpool when naming favourites, not that it’s abundantly clear that they will make a bid. They have other targets (their preference would be Michael Olise but Bayern are highly unlikely to let him leave) and may well not get involved in the bidding for Bowen. But if they do, would he be the answer to their Salah-shaped problem?
Where would Bowen fit best as summer transfer battle gathers pace?
Is Bowen Liverpool’s best bet as they search for their replacement for Salah? Perhaps. Certainly, age considerations aside, he has proven that he can score goals in volume, and that’s a crucial consideration given the difference that losing Salah’s steady stream of strikes has made to their performances over the past year or so.
Bowen may have just eight league goals this season but he passed double figures three times in the past four years and, crucially, has once again comfortably exceeded his xG total with actual goals – and indication that his finishing remains as crisp as ever. The issue hasn’t been Bowen’s ability to score so much as West Ham’s ability to provide him with chances.
The rate at which offers opportunities to others has remained stable, too, suggesting that a dip in production owes more to his team’s travails than to any downturn in his own form – in fact, in several areas, particularly in one-on-one situations and his dribbling, he has actually improved.
His ability to operate effectively both right out on the byline and in more central areas could also make him ideal for Liverpool. Most wingers are clearly better coming inside or staying wide – Bowen is dangerous either way. That gives him some of Salah’s tactical versatility and ability to bring players around him into the equation from different directions. Defending against Bowen is not a predictable experience.
The only real debate (again, age notwithstanding) is whether his ceiling is high enough. Bowen typically passes 10 goals per season, and might scrape his way up to 20 in all competitions. Salah passed 20 and thought about 30. How much of that is down to the gulf in quality between the two and how much is down to the teams they’ve played for? That’s a question Liverpool will have to answer for themselves. They may be tempted to gamble on a younger, ascending player who they perceive to have greater potential.
If they do so, then it could be to Newcastle or Everton’s benefit. Neither side have a player who scores or creates goals as reliably, and Bowen would instantly become one of either side’s best players and likely their greatest goal threat.
There are considerations about how well he would mesh with either side’s more direct attacking styles – Bowen is at his best when gets the ball at his feet and lacks the raw pace to burn defenders over the top on the counter-attack – but he would also be the kind of player a club like that signs and then works around, rather than a player who fits into a system. His addition might require adjustments, but as long as Eddie Howe or Moyes were willing to make those tweaks, then he would likely be a superb addition. That said, the same was true of Yoane Wissa on paper.
Certainly both will be hoping that Liverpool get cold feet and look elsewhere, because if they make a move it’s impossible to imagine them not getting their man. It might not take long to find out whether or not they will.
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