The Europa League is the top of the group, and the league is also expected to win a place in the European zone. Following last season's UEFA Europa League triumph, the Hammers continue to keep a low profile. Much of the team's success this season has been due to their attacking trident – Bowen, Paqueta and Kudus. The season is not yet halfway through, but all three are involved in scoring in double figures.
Bowen - Comparable to Haaland, to compete for the top scorer].
England's top scorer Harry Kane has left Bayern Munich, but there is a new homegrown force on the Premier League scorer list – with 10 goals, West Ham striker Bowen is currently third in the table. He is only one goal behind second-placed Salah and tied with fourth-placed Son Heung-min. Newcastle's Wilson, Brighton's Alex Ferguson, Aston Villa's Watkins, these strikers who have performed well in the Premier League this season, have all been crushed by this small goalscorer who is only 175cm tall.
It is worth noting that all 10 of Bowen's goals came from open play and not from penalties. Bowen could have gone one step further if penalties had been taken away – three of Salah's 11 goals and one of Son's 10 goals had come from 12 yards. Of all the strikers in the Premier League, only Haaland, who has scored 11 goals in sports so far this season, has more than Bowen. After breaking the Tottenham goal at the start of December, Bowen also set a record of seven consecutive Premier League away goals, a feat that only three people have ever achieved, the other two being two legendary goalscorers, Sergio Aguero and Robin van Persie.
Bowen is not a new star, having scored 18 goals and 11 assists in the 2021-22 season, a feat that earned him a place in the England national team and attracted the attention of big clubs such as AC Milan. However, his performance in the new position of center forward is still worthy of the joy of Hammers fans. Antonio is getting older this season, Scamacca is "returned" back to Serie A, and the Hammers choose to promote from within in the center forward position, leaving Bowen as a false nine.
Instead of getting lost in the jungle of muscles in the middle lane, Bowen used his agility and archery skills to fight his way through the world. Moyes even compared his protégé to Cristiano Ronaldo, saying that the Portuguese superstar can transform from winger to centre-forward, and Bowen can also become West Ham United's version of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Paqueta - Iron hammer tempering and rebirth, but the road ahead is confused].
A considerable part of the "cake" that Bowen ate came from his Brazilian teammate Paqueta. In the 17th round of the Premier League, West Ham United fired Wolves 3-0, and Bowen's third goal to seal the victory was instigated by the Brazilians. Paqueta was the attacking commander in that game, and in addition to Bowen's goal, Kudus's two goals were also the work of him.
Paqueta's career started not low, and after winning the Brazilian Liga MVP in Brazil in the 2019 winter window, he joined AC Milan for 35 million euros. Paqueta, who made his continental debut, was once seen by Milan fans as the team's hopes for Champions League qualification in the second half, and his link with Polish striker Piatek was even compared to Shevchenko Gakaka. But after a brief honeymoon period, Paqueta ran into trouble. Later in the 2018-19 season, he suffered a violent foul and was sidelined for a long period of time, followed by a lengthy ban for disrespecting the referee.
By the time Paqueta was ready to set sail again, Milan was in a new round of turmoil. From Gattuso to Giamboro to Stefano Pioli, Paqueta has gone through three managers in just one year. After the resumption of Serie A in 2020, although Pioli created a powerful run-and-bomb system that allowed the Rossoneri to go undefeated, Paqueta became the frustrated man of the Milan team and was eventually sold in the summer of 2020.
After a move to Lyon, Paqueta joined West Ham United in 2022. The report card of 5 goals and 7 assists in the first season can be regarded as a reinterpretation of his own strength. The midfielder has been further transformed by David Moyes this season, moving to the left winger and showing his skills closer to goal. In less than half a season, they are close to completing last season's task, scoring five goals and four assists.
Paqueta's brilliant performance also caught the attention of Manchester City. In the summer of 2023, the Blue Moon Legion wants to sign him, and the winter may launch another attack. However, the player is also under investigation for suspected gambling. Whether it is to re-enter the giants or be banned miserably, there may be a conclusion in the next six months.
Kudus – a new force in Ghana, justifying the name of Japon
A right winger from Ajax, ** transferred to the Premier League", hearing such a description, most people probably think of the controversial Manchester United attacker Antony. A year and a half later, the attacker still failed to prove that he was worthy of a transfer fee of nearly 100 million euros, but instead fell into the nickname of "Compass" because of various mysterious skills. But not every player produced by Jia Fu is not worthy of the name, and Anthony's former teammate Kudus has become the new favorite of Hammers fans.
Having only officially arrived in London in August, the Ghanaian attacker has experienced a period of adaptation at the start of the season, mainly in the Europa League. From November onwards, Kudus began to show its value. He opened the scoring in a Carabao Cup defeat to Arsenal and then scored in back-to-back Premier League games against Brentford. Kudus was back in fine form in December, scoring a goal in the Europa League group stage tie at home to Freiburg to secure a place in the last 16 of the Europa League without having to go to the play-offsBack in the Premier League, he scored twice against Wolves.
Mirroring his team-mate Bowen, the big Englishman switched from the right to the middle, while Kudus moved from the middle to the right. Last season at Ajax, due to Tadic's age, Lorenzo Luka was overwhelmed, and Kudus was put on the front line as a false nine. There was a lot of distraction in Jiafu last season, and Kudus' rise was a rare bright spot in a losing season. He eventually became the team's leading scorer with 17 goals, in addition to six assists.
After moving to the Premier League, Kudus' flexible and fast positioning was further developed by David Moyes. Although Bowen is the center forward and Kudus is the right winger, the two players with the characteristics of a false nine often wear butterflies and switch positions back and forth during the game. Paqueta's position is not simply a left winger, but more like a 'wide midfielder', who can sort out the attack in all areas of the front. Unfortunately, in the coming January, Kudus, who is an international for Ghana, is about to return to the AFCDA for the African Cup of Nations. West Ham fans will surely miss the new signing.