Bowen not the answer long-term
Deploying Jarrod Bowen as a striker has proven ineffective, particularly against teams employing a defensive strategy. In both the matches against Olympiacos and Nottingham Forest, where Bowen was positioned as a central forward, he struggled to make a significant impact.
In the later stages of these games, Bowen was shifted back to his natural wide position, resulting in him posing far more threat. The issue with using Bowen as a striker lies in his lack of physicality. While he can be effective on the counter-attack, when faced with defenders who are well-positioned and sitting back, Bowen often finds himself overpowered.
Bowen needs to play wide
To be clear, I still believe Bowen can occasionally make an impact in a central role, but it’s not a sustainable solution for our striking issues. The fact that David Moyes has benched Michail Antonio in consecutive games suggests that the manager recognises a potential problem.
Addressing this issue becomes crucial, especially with the January transfer window approaching. Bowen is expected to be reinstated on the right wing during Mohammed Kudus’ absence for the AFCON, emphasising the need for a more viable long-term solution to our striker problem. We certainly can’t afford to spend 18 months pontificating as we did following the sale of Sebatien Haller.