Journalist drops fresh West Ham starting XI claim involving Michail Antonio and Jarrod Bowen

Star forward Jarrod Bowen has ‘been carrying’ West Ham United for several weeks now, according to football journalist Paul Brown.

The Hammers are attempting to keep pace with the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham in the race for the top four this season, but their recent form has seen them lose ground of late.

West Ham finished in a remarkable sixth place in the Premier League standings last term under the stewardship of manager David Moyes, and they could improve on that result this time around.

Currently, the east London outfit are just four points behind the Red Devils, who occupy the highly desired fourth spot, although their nearest rivals below them in the table have several games in hand.

And a run of just one win in their last five top-flight fixtures has significantly dented West Ham’s hopes of qualifying for Europe’s elite cup competition.

However, Bowen’s outstanding displays this season have kept them in the running, even when key striker Michail Antonio has found goals hard to come by.

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Bowen – who is valued at £31.5m by Transfermarkt – has registered eight strikes and 10 assists in 26 league appearances to date, with five of those goals coming in West Ham’s last six outings.

Meanwhile, Antonio has found his early-season form impossible to maintain and has failed to find the back of the net once in his previous half a dozen fixtures, highlighting the capital club’s reliance on Bowen.

Brown has claimed that West Ham ‘won’t be able to ride’ the wave of the 25-year-old’s incredible form into the top four, and they will have to ‘find something’ else in what remains of 2021/22.

He told GiveMeSport: “The only cover really there for