Over the years, the West Ham United supporters have been blessed with countless attacking talents who have caught the eye and captured the hearts of the Hammers faithful.
Dimitri Payet is undoubtedly the best example over the last decade, forever going down in the club’s history after his memorable 18 months in East London.
The Frenchman joined from Marseille during the summer of 2015, for a fee in the region of £10.7m – but no one could’ve anticipated the immediate impact he would’ve had in the Premier League.
He registered a total of 26 combined goals and assists during his debut campaign in English football, producing some incredible moments of magic – including his superb free-kick against Crystal Palace at the Boleyn Ground.
Payet would play 18 times during the first half of the 2016/17 season, before handing in a transfer request and subsequently moving back to Ligue 1 to join his former side for around £25m.
However, fast-forward to today, current boss Julen Lopetegui has his own talents on the books, with hope the duo can turn around the poor start to the new campaign.
Bowen & Kudus’ stats for West Ham in 2024/25
After his goalscoring campaign last time out which saw him register 20 goals in all competitions, Jarrod Bowen was rewarded by being named as West Ham’s new club captain, hoping to lead the side to another European finish in 2024/25.
However, eight league games into the new Premier League season, the England international and his teammates have struggled to make a great start to life under new boss Lopetegui.
The Hammers currently sit in 15th place, picking up just eight points from as many matches – a disappointing return so far considering the £100m investment from the hierarchy over the summer.
Bowen has registered three goals in all competitions so far this campaign, currently boasting the highest tally of any player in the squad – beating fellow attacker Mohammed Kudus in the charts.
The Ghanaian had endured a quiet start to the Lopetegui era, scoring just once before last weekend’s clash with rivals Tottenham Hotspur, before notching his second goal of 2024/25.
However, it would rapidly go downhill for the 24-year-old subsequently being sent off after a VAR review adjudged the forward to have lashed out, upgrading his yellow card to red – meaning he will miss the next three matches for the Hammers.
Despite the duo’s importance to Lopetegui’s first team, they’ve both been outscored by a player who endured a torrid time at the club, subsequently leaving on the cheap a handful of years ago.
The man who’s outscored Bowen & Kudus this season
After joining West Ham for £8m in the summer of 2019, there were high expectations on the shoulders of striker Albian Ajeti after his record of 21 goals the season prior for FC Basel.
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However, the move would be a disaster for both parties, with the Swiss talent only making 12 appearances in all competitions during his debut campaign – with the 2019/20 season his only one at the club before being sold.
Ajeti’s lack of impact at the London Stadium saw him be offloaded, joining Scottish Premiership side Celtic for a fee in the region of £5m – seeing the Hammers make a loss of £3m in just 12 months on the forward.
However, in the current day, the 27-year-old is back at FC Basel and has found his goalscoring touch once again, registering six goals in all competitions so far this season – outscoring both Bowen and Kudus, albeit in a lower-quality division.
|
Ajeti vs Bowen & Kudus in 2024/25 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Player |
Games |
Goals |
Assists |
Minutes |
|
Albian Ajeti |
10 |
6 |
4 |
749 |
|
Jarrod Bowen |
10 |
3 |
2 |
867 |
|
Mohammed Kudus |
10 |
2 |
1 |
693 |
It’s great to see a former player find his form after such a torrid time in East London, with his move to the Premier League just not right for either party.
However, Bowen and Kudus are two players who are more than capable of thriving in England’s top flight, with the pair needing to recapture their best form to prevent a disappointing first 12 months of Lopetegui’s tenure at the helm.
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