Bowen wants Hammers to bounce back
West Ham forward Jarrod Bowen is urging his teammates to put their Newcastle nightmare behind them and deliver a strong response against the Spuds on Tuesday night.
The Hammers were left heartbroken after surrendering a commanding 3-1 lead in the final quarter-hour against Newcastle. Michail Antonio, Mohammed Kudus, and Bowen himself found the net for West Ham, but a late comeback fuelled by two penalties and a Harvey Barnes brace resulted in a devastating 4-3 defeat.
Bowen acknowledged the deep disappointment within the squad but stressed the importance of a swift recovery. “We’ve all very disappointed,” he admitted, “because we felt we were in control.” He highlighted the quick turnaround as a reason to move on: “We’ve just got to stand tall and put it behind us… We’re back at it in just a few days’ time.”
The 27-year-old believes analysing their errors is vital for improvement: “We have to analyse what went wrong and learn from it ready for Tuesday.”
Bowen pinpointed Newcastle’s second penalty, converted by Alexander Isak, as a turning point. “We knew if they got a second goal it would give them a big boost, and that’s what happened,” he explained. He feels West Ham failed to manage the game effectively after conceding: “At 3-2 we needed to manage the game… but we weren’t able to do that.”
With their European ambitions on the line, the Hammers now shift their focus to the Tottenham clash. “We can’t dwell on the frustration,” Bowen declared. “We just need to make sure we get it right going forward, and that starts on Tuesday night.”