Brilliant Jarrod Bowen deserves an England chance

Time Stamp: February 27, 2022 4:50 AM

There are so many reasons to love the current England team. Obviously, and most importantly, their talent is key; this is the first generation of players in many a year that look like they could actually deliver on their incredible potential. But it is their relatability which means this team feels different; there is a grounded nature about the players that feeds down from the manager, Gareth Southgate, and adds to the united feeling in a country which has otherwise been incredibly divided in a number of ways for the best part of a decade now.

But that humbleness isn’t solely Southgate’s responsibility; it is also natural. Looking throughout the squad which reached the final of Euro 2020 last summer, a theme which dominates is a shared reliance on the English Football League for at least part of their development.

Whether it be through academies and early first team opportunities like John Stones at Barnsley or Harry Maguire and Kyle Walker at Sheffield United, or loan spells like Jack Grealish at Notts County, a big chunk of the squad had done the hard yards and seen what football can look like far away from the glitz and glamour of a big international or a Champions League night, and they became better and more refined players for it.

The EFL has long been untapped by England teams, but it could actually prove to be a secret weapon in the quest for trophies in years to come. Just how much influence this may have had is a question that can never be answered, but the spine of the ‘Golden Generation’ of England players in the early to mid-2000s – the barometer against all disappointments are measured thanks to their unwavering ability to flatter to deceive on the biggest of stages – was born out of the elite.

John Terry, Frank Lampard, David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Paul Scholes, Michael Owen; the list could continue. These were players who grew up at top clubs; although that brings its own different type of pressure and some did drop down the leagues on loan, there is a quality and a growth in a player that is missing.

Ever since Jamie Vardy’s movie-making rise from the depths of Stocksbridge Park Steels FC to winning the Premier League with Leicester City and playing for England in the space of six years, there has been an appetite to give opportunities to unfancied players. The unfashionable became fashionable and rags to riches stories became desirable. But for all the talk of fairytales, all that really matters is that the player is good enough; the only difference is the net is being cast much wider and more chances are being taken.

Somebody who represents that in a strong sense right now is Jarrod Bowen, widely tipped to be the next England debutant under Southgate when his squad is announced in March. The 25-year-old’s career began at Hereford United and really took off at Hull City; while the Tigers languished in the Championship after top flight relegation in 2017, he went from strength to strength, scoring key goals in good numbers to initially keep the club afloat, developing into a talisman. It became a bit of a saga when he outgrew them but remained until as recent as January 2020, when West Ham eventually swooped on Deadline Day.

A rather negative opinion of Bowen from his doubters stemmed from the paradoxical nature of his game. As a right-sided forward who scored goals from inside the box more often than not at Hull, he showcased the modern phenomenon of versatility, but without blistering pace, almost a prerequisite for a wide player these days, or the typical physique of a lone striker, there were those who believed the step up in quality would catch him out, given the lack of obvious skillset to thrive in either role.

But he has only grown since moving to the London Stadium and now looks primed for international football; given his influence on David Moyes’ side, could also be set for the Champions League too, be it with the Hammers or, if reports are to be believed, Liverpool.

Moyes has been crucial to his rise; Bowen is exactly his type of player. Talented, but with more character than technique; a fighter who understands the grind. It may be a cliché, but he has shown the sort of tenacity which is even more important than quality. He is a product of the EFL; direct, hungry, effective and, when it matters most, deadly.

There is an incredibly bright future in store for Bowen and he deserves everything he gets. He’s proven people wrong already, and although he may not be as easy on the eye as Grealish or Phil Foden, he’ll be ready to do it all again if he finally plays for England. No other top nation has a football pyramid with the depth of England, and as Bowen is the latest to prove, it needs to be utilised properly.

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