Jarrod Bowen hopes to be able to reward the West Ham United faithful when he and his teammates battle it out in the UEFA Europa Conference League final on Wednesday.
The England international winger was part of the part of the side that was defeated by Eintracht Frankfurt in the semi-finals of last season’s UEFA Europa League, and now he hopes that the Hammers can put those feelings long behind them and taste European success in Prague.
Bowen joined West Ham United in January 2020, and has seen first-hand the highs and the lows that have come during the past three-plus years. Now he wants to achieve greatness in what he calls the biggest game of his career.
“I’ve played for England, but I think achieving this with your teammates who you’ve been with together to get to a final and you have the opportunity to win a trophy together, it will be a massive moment,” admits the 26-year-old, who was speaking to media ahead of the final at Rush Green Training Ground.
“Of course, we’re all excited about being in the final of a European competition and this will be the pinnacle for a lot of players. It will certainly be the biggest game of my career.
“We all want it, but it’s important to not get too hyped up for it. We need to find that balance of not going over the top but also not caring enough.
“The main priority is to win the game. As players we want to be part of that moment but for the fans it would mean so much. I want to be part of the squad that gives the fans that moment and that’s what we’re all striving to do.”
In preparation for the match at the Eden Aréna on Wednesday, David Moyes’ Hammers jetted off to Portugal for a three-day training camp.
And Bowen enjoyed his time away in a different environment and explained how he hopes the change of scenery will help the team heading into Wednesday’s game.
“It’s good to get away from the training ground for the final. We spend all season at the training ground, so I think a few days away in the sunshine is a really positive change heading into the game.
“The lads were laughing, and we all felt good and relaxed. It was somewhere different, which was important. It allowed us to get our minds ready for the final in a new environment, not the same place that we have been doing so all year.”
Bowen arrived at West Ham when the Club were battling against relegation in the 2019/20 season. He has felt the pressure of needing to climb the table or to pick up a result in Europe before, but this game will be different.
The winger believes the Hammers have every chance heading into Wednesday’s game and hopes that this group of players can etch their names in history come the full-time whistle.
“I think it’s exciting because I believe we have every chance. I go into every game wanting to score for West Ham, but scoring in this game would be brilliant as long as we win the game.
“I love this Club and it’s an absolute privilege to play here. To have these moments and be preparing for a final, I would have never thought that it would had happened when I joined West Ham – so it fills me with so much pride that I’m part of the squad that could do that.
“We’re all buying into it as a team, we believe we’ve got a really good opportunity to win this game against a really tough side. We’ve done a lot of good things in this competition this season. It’s a one-off game and we’ll see what happens,” he concluded.
