Michael Owen Calls Jarrod Bowen the Perfect Replacement for Salah at Liverpool

Michael Owen has nailed his colours to the mast. In his eyes, Liverpool already have the ideal successor to Mohamed Salah – and he’s just gone down with West Ham.

Jarrod Bowen, West Ham captain, hometown hero and the face of their relegated side, is the man Owen believes should be walking out at Anfield next season, not trudging around the Championship.

Owen: Bowen is “absolute perfect” for Liverpool

Owen has long been an admirer of Bowen, echoing the stance of former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, who was known to track the winger closely. With West Ham now out of the Premier League, the conversation has sharpened. Bowen, 27, has just produced a standout campaign in a struggling side, finishing with nine goals and eleven assists – numbers that stand out all the more given the chaos around him.

Speaking on Premier League Productions, Owen didn’t bother with caveats.

“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, acknowledging the emotional pull of staying.

“If there’s any big player that is going to be relegated and stick with it then you can see it.

“However, Jarrod Bowen is incredible, you’ve got a short career, I mean he has to be playing in the Premier League.

If something really, really interesting [is offered], 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.”

That is the crux of it. Salah has gone, Liverpool’s right flank has lost its talisman, and Owen believes the answer is hiding in plain sight: a proven Premier League wide forward who scores, creates and works relentlessly without the ball.

“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,” Owen continued.

“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.

“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.”

That is the fork in the road Bowen now faces. Championship rebuild with his boyhood club, or a leap into the elite with one of the Premier League’s giants.

Bowen’s stance: loyalty first, future later

For now, Bowen is not biting. In the immediate aftermath of relegation, with emotions raw and the London Stadium still digesting the drop, he pushed any talk of an exit firmly to one side.

“Listen, it’s still very, very raw. Talking about futures is disrespectful to the club, the fans, everything like that,” he said when asked about his plans.

“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.”

The message was clear: the wound is too fresh for transfer talk. Bowen doubled down on that theme, framing his commitment in personal terms.

“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.”

Those words will resonate with West Ham supporters who have watched him grow into their leader and talisman. They also underline the tension at the heart of his summer: loyalty versus ambition, emotion versus opportunity.

A test of Liverpool’s ambition – and Bowen’s

From Liverpool’s perspective, the equation is brutal but simple. Salah has gone. The goals, the assists, the aura on that right side need replacing. Bowen offers Premier League experience, end product and the sort of work rate that has traditionally thrived under intense, high-press systems at Anfield.

For Bowen, the numbers are already on the board. Nine goals, eleven assists, and influence that stretched far beyond raw statistics in a side that collapsed around him. He has carried responsibility, worn the armband, and remained a threat even as West Ham slid towards the trapdoor.

West Ham, though, will not let him go lightly. He is their captain, their symbol, and their best hope of bouncing straight back. The club’s public stance is built into Bowen’s own words: the mission is promotion, and he is at the centre of it.

So the summer looms as a straight contest: can Liverpool – or any of the Premier League’s Big Six – put an offer on the table that matches Owen’s conviction and tests Bowen’s loyalty to breaking point?

If they do, West Ham’s captain will have to decide what matters most: dragging his club out of the Championship, or stepping into Salah’s old shirt at Anfield and chasing titles instead of promotion.