Michael Owen Calls Jarrod Bowen the Perfect Successor to Mohamed Salah
Michael Owen believes Liverpool have already been handed the ideal successor to Mohamed Salah – and he’s wearing claret and blue.
Jarrod Bowen, the heartbeat of a relegated West Ham side, has long been admired at Anfield. Jurgen Klopp liked him. Scouts kept coming back with the same reports. Now, with West Ham dropping into the Championship, the conversation around Bowen has shifted from admiration to opportunity.
Owen is in no doubt where the winger’s future should lie.
Owen’s bold verdict
Speaking on Premier League Productions, the former Liverpool striker did not bother with caveats when asked if Bowen could replace Salah.
“I’ve said for a long time, I don’t make any apologies, Mo Salah has gone now from Liverpool, I think Bowen is the absolute perfect replacement for Mo Salah at Liverpool,” Owen said.
The numbers back up the praise. In a struggling West Ham side that slid out of the Premier League, Bowen still produced nine goals and eleven assists, dragging his team forward while the ground gave way beneath them. When others faded, he carried on running, pressing, finishing, creating.
Owen admires the loyalty, too. Bowen is West Ham’s captain, a local hero in claret and blue, embedded in the club and the area.
“Under normal circumstances, no. But he is such a West Ham lad, he’s the captain, he’s adored by the club, his family are all from the area,” Owen said, outlining why you could imagine him staying even in the second tier.
“If there’s any big player that is going to be relegated and stick with it then you can see it.”
Then came the reality check.
“However, Jarrod Bowen is incredible, you’ve got a short career, I mean he has to be playing in the Premier League.”
For Owen, if a club of Liverpool’s stature comes calling, the equation changes completely.
“If something really, really interesting is offered… If an opportunity came along for him like that, to play for Liverpool, then even the most ardent West Ham fan couldn’t begrudge that. Instead of playing in the Championship, go to one of the best teams in the world and fill Mo Salah’s boots, it’s really exciting for him.”
That is the crux of it. Bowen, 27, is entering the peak years of his career. West Ham are heading into a slog of a Championship campaign. Liverpool are searching for a new right-sided talisman after Salah’s departure. The pieces fit neatly, at least from the outside.
If that elite move does not materialise, Owen can still see another path.
“However, if an opportunity doesn’t come from one of the big boys like that, then maybe he’ll fight his way back into the Premier League with West Ham.”
Bowen’s response: loyalty first, future later
For now, Bowen is not entertaining the transfer talk in public. The pain of relegation is too fresh, the sense of responsibility too strong.
“Listen, it’s still very, very raw. Talking about futures is disrespectful to the club, the fans, everything like that,” he said after West Ham’s drop was confirmed on Sunday.
“This club deserves to be in the Premier League. That’s our aim now, this season is done, our aim now is to get back in the Premier League. That’s as simple as it is.”
No flirting with suitors. No hint of an exit. Just a clear message about the task ahead.
He doubled down when pressed again.
“Like I said, it’s disrespectful to everyone to start speaking about futures and saying what’s going to happen.
“Like I said, I want this club to be in the Premier League. It’s a club that means so much to me, that’s given me so much, so my vision is getting this club back in the Premier League.”
The words will land well in east London. They also underline the dilemma. A player who feels that deeply about his club, but who is operating at a level that screams top flight.
Liverpool’s question
From Liverpool’s perspective, the logic is clear. Bowen knows the league. He scores, assists, presses, runs himself into the ground. He thrives from the right, cutting inside on his stronger left foot, just as Salah did. He carries leadership, resilience, and a proven end product in difficult circumstances.
He would not be Salah. Nobody is. But he could be the next right-sided reference point in a new Liverpool era.
For Bowen, the choice may soon be brutally simple: stay and lead a promotion charge with the club that “means so much” to him, or take the kind of offer Owen describes – the chance to “fill Mo Salah’s boots” at one of the game’s modern powerhouses.
The Championship, or Anfield under the brightest lights. How long can those two paths run side by side?
