West Ham far from alone with Bowen contract woes

West Ham may well have a looming contract woes with Jarrod Bowen, but we’re far from the only club with key players running their contracts down. Of course, there is genuine optimism within West Ham that we’ll come to an agreement with Bowen to secure his long term future. But if you thought the problem was exclusive to The Hammers, think again. Because there are some key players who will soon be available on the open market for nothing.

Aston Villa – Ollie Watkins

• Striker Ollie Watkins’ current deal expires in 2025, attracting interest from top clubs like Chelsea and Arsenal.
• Watkins, having achieved a notable feat of two hat-tricks in a season, is reportedly open to renewing his contract with Villa.

Brentford – Ivan Toney

• Star striker Ivan Toney’s contract is approaching its last 18 months, a situation that would typically cause concern.
• However, Brentford remains relatively calm, anticipating a bidding war for Toney among Premier League clubs, leading to a potential significant pay rise for the player.
• Previously recommended to West Ham by Peterborough’s Barry Fry who has close links with David Sullivan.

Brighton – Kaoru Mitoma

• Kaoru Mitoma, a crucial attacking asset for Brighton, has just under two years left on his contract.
• The club is confident about recommitment, despite vultures circling around Mitoma, given the expiration of contracts for other veterans.
• Mitoma famously gave Ben Johnson a torrid time last season during the away Premier League fixture.

Chelsea – Ian Maatsen

• Among Chelsea’s plethora of long-term contracts, attention is now on Thiago Silva and Ian Maatsen.
• Maatsen, who received significant interest from West Ham, is yet to finalize a contract extension, with two offers previously rejected by the player.

Crystal Palace – Eberechi Eze

• Eberechi Eze is a high-priority target for David Moyes, and his contract situation is of utmost importance to Crystal Palace.
• Talks have been initiated to secure Eze’s future, with potential competition from larger clubs complicating matters.

Newcastle – Joelinton

• Bruno Guimaraes new deal is on the verge of confirmation, shifting the focus to Joelinton.
• Eddie Howe, emphasized the need for contract extensions to ‘key players’. Joelinton can play in a number of positions and the Toon are awash with money, so I’d anticipate this getting sorted quickly.

Tottenham – Heung-min Son

• Tottenham Hotspur is keen to avoid a contract saga reminiscent of the Harry Kane situation.
• Talks with Heung-min Son have already commenced, aiming to secure a renewal before he approaches 18 months remaining on his deal.

Whilst the Jarrod Bowen contract impasse is far from ideal, we’re not alone in the situation. There are also many others such as Liverpool’s Thiago and Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne who I’ve omitted from the list.

Bowen has been in exceptional form this season and currently sits 3rd in the Premier League top scoring charts. Ordinarily, West Ham could expect to command £70 million in the transfer market for such a prolific player. However, if he still hasn’t signed a new deal by the end of the season then we’ll be lucky to get £30m.

It will be interesting to see whether the club allow the player to enter the last 12 months of his contract. Hopefully we’ll never have to find out. West Ham and Bowen’s advisors remain locked in talks, and I’d be astounded if he wasn’t being offered a deal which would make him our top earner.