It says a lot about the standards Jarrod Bowen has set for himself as a West Ham United player that his 2025/26 season has frequently been labelled a bit of a disappointment.
In recent months, Bowen has apologised for missing crucial chances and even rowed with the fans on one particularly bitter evening. Furthermore, the England international is yet to snap a Premier League drought which has dragged on since the 3-2 defeat by Chelsea two months ago.
Jarrod Bowen will need to score five goals between now and April 25th if he is to match his tally of 13 after 34 top-flight appearances in 2025/26.
Jarrod Bowen is still West Ham’s BEST finisher! 🎯
But is Nuno getting the most out of him?
Jarrod Bowen of West Ham United celebrates after scoring the team's first goal during the Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round match between West Ham United and Brentford at the London Stadium in Stratford, England, on March 9, 2026.
A closer look at the statistics, though, suggests that talk of Bowen’s demise have been somewhat exaggerated.
Jarrod Bowen is still West Ham United’s best finisher
Add those six assists to his eight goals, and Bowen sits eighth in the Premier League rankings for ‘goal contributions’.
Only seven players have contributed more than his 14 G/A; Erling Haaland, Bruno Fernandes, Igor Thiago, Joao Pedro, Antoine Semenyo, Harry Wilson and Hugo Ekitike.
That tally of 14 also places Bowen above Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers – a candidate to be England’s starting number ten at the World Cup – as well as Bryan Mbeumo, Morgan Gibbs-White, Viktor Gyokeres, Cole Palmer, Phil Foden and reigning Player of the Year Mo Salah.
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Furthermore, according to FotMob, Bowen’s eight goals have come from an XG of just six.
Compare that to Callum Wilson [five goals from an XG of 6.5], Crysencio Summerville [five goals from an XG of 4.3], Bowen is still statistically the most ruthless finisher at Nuno Espirito Santo’s disposal.
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West Ham star Jarrod Bowen registered an assist in England's 5-0 win over Latvia
Photo by Mateusz Slodkowski/Getty Images
How can Nuno Espirito Santo get more out of Bowen?
The problem might not be his end-product, then, but a lack of goalscoring chances. Bowen’s average of 2.2 shots per game is his lowest since the 2022/23 season.
Coincidentally, 2022/23 was Bowen’s worst season in terms of goals. He netted only six that term.
On many occasions under Nuno, the skipper has found himself stuck on the touchline; chalk on his boots, and forced to hold the width. Though this is not as quantifiable as ‘XG’, Bowen does appear to be playing wider this season than in previous times.
As his superb strikes against the likes of Nottingham Forest and Everton show, he is still an elite finisher when given the chance.
Taty Castellanos appears to be losing influence by the week at West Ham, while Pablo Felipe is yet to open his account on English soil.
Is there an argument to be made that Nuno should put Bowen back in the centre-forward role he played occasionally under David Moyes? If not, one thing Nuno can do is find a way to free up his skipper, allowing him to drift infield and avoid being stuck on the touchline; marked out of games, quite literally on the periphery.
Whether that means playing a back-three consistently, giving the width-hugging duties to Aaron Wan-Bissaka, is up for the head coach to decide.
But when Jarrod Bowen has the freedom to shoot from the edge of the box and drift into goalscoring positions, West Ham are a far more dangerous side.
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