Star forward Jarrod Bowen of West Ham United will be sidelined by injury on Thursday when the team plays Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg of the Europa League quarterfinals, according to manager David Moyes. With 19 goals in 40 appearances in all competitions this season, including a goal in the 5-0 second-leg victory over Bundesliga team Freiburg in the last 16 last month, Bowen leads the Hammers in scoring.
Areola’s absence means that Lukasz Fabianski will likely start in goal, while James Ward-Prowse and Tomas Soucek are anticipated to start in centre midfield. Moyes may elect to go with a three-man defence to make up for the lack of central alternatives. In such a move, Michail Antonio is anticipated to fill in up front in Bowen’s absence, with Lucas Paqueta and Mohammed Kudus joining him in attack. Vladimir Coufal and Emerson Palmieri might also play as wing-backs.
The 27-year-old England international was given the starting position up front for West Ham in their 2-1 Premier League triumph over Wolverhampton Wanderers last Saturday. But barely nine minutes into the half, Bowen hobbled out of the tunnel after a hard collision with Mario Lemina, the midfielder for Wolves. In preparation for their match against the Bundesliga champions-elect Leverkusen at the BayArena on Thursday, Moyes and his West Ham club landed in Germany on Wednesday night. Bowen, on the other hand, has not travelled with his teammates and is still recovering at home.
West Ham will feel Bowen’s absence, Moyes has acknowledged, but the Scotsman is sure he has other attacking alternatives available who can step up on Thursday. “Jarrod isn’t present. He is not able to play tomorrow night due to an injury. “At this point, we’re not sure when he might return,” Moyes stated on Wednesday during a press conference.
We believe that when he sustained the knee injury to his back, he twisted and most likely suffered some little damage, similar to what a fast bowler in cricket would experience. The rotation, which is where we believe the harm has originated, is the key. Because he was a key player in several of our most memorable games, most notably the UEFA Europa Conference League final last year, Jarrod will always be missed. “But, these things happen in football, and we have players ready to come in to try and get the job done for us.”
Due to injuries, West Ham will also be without goalkeeper Alphonse Areola and midfielder Kalvin Phillips. Additionally, lynchpin Edson Alvarez is suspended for the first game. Areola is still out of action due to a groyne injury he suffered during the first half of the Hammers’ 4-3 loss to Newcastle United on March 30, while Phillips is recovering from a hamstring injury he got during training.
“Alphonse Areola isn’t here with us for this one,” Moyes stated. “We believe that Kalvin Phillips has only slightly strained his lower hamstring, at the back of his knee, after kicking someone’s leg during practice. Although that happened yesterday, I’m not sure for how long, therefore I don’t think it will last. We need to figure out a means to cover that part of the pitch since Edson is also out. He helps us out in a variety of ways, but we can’t play without him.”