Jarrod Bowen didn’t hold back after West Ham’s disappointing Premier League defeat to Nottingham Forest, acknowledging the performance “wasn’t good enough” and admitting things could have turned even bleaker.
“It’s not good enough,” Bowen said. “When you go down to ten men, it just gets tougher. Forest had the advantage, and we needed to be smarter defensively, but we failed. We conceded twice, and honestly, it could’ve been worse – it’s really frustrating.”
Despite his candid take on the overall game, Bowen was somewhat lenient in his assessment of the opening half. “The start of the game was quite open,” he noted. “We had a couple of chances, like Lucas Paquetá’s shot that they cleared off the line. Their goal was disappointing since it felt like an easy one to concede, but with ten men, it’s even harder.”
Yet Bowen’s claim of “a couple of chances” doesn’t quite match the stats. The Hammers only recorded one shot on target in the first half – and that came in the 46th minute. Forest were in control long before Edson Álvarez’s reckless red card, with West Ham managing just a single accurate cross and shot on target in the opening 45 minutes. Ironically, the team looked sharper after going down to ten men as coach Julen Lopetegui reinstated players to their usual positions, allowing Bowen to shine.
It’s hard not to sympathise with Bowen, West Ham’s standout player, who’s been handed the challenging role of captain and something of a poisoned chalice. He’s clearly making the best of a tough situation, but even he couldn’t deny the Hammers were fortunate to escape with a 3-0 score line.
