Jarrod Bowen has enjoyed facing Wolverhampton Wanderers during his West Ham United career.
A goal in a 2-0 triumph at London Stadium last October was the 26-year-old’s fourth strike in his last five Premier League meetings with Saturday’s opponents – a record he has not bettered against any other side while in Claret and Blue.
And so, as the Irons head to Molineux on Saturday, the aim for Bowen is more of the same, then?
“It’s about doing the same things,” Bowen agreed, ahead of the trip to the West Midlands. “We've already beaten them at home this season, which was a good result. And there's been progress from us in the last few weeks too. Yes, some of the results haven't been what we wanted, but a 1-0 win away from home [at Brentford in the Emirates FA Cup third round] gives us a lot of confidence going into Wolves.”
Even if he will not admit it, Bowen's goals have more than played their part in those five most-recent fixtures with Wolves. In them, the Irons have won four and tasted defeat just once, netted ten goals and conceded just three.
“We want to be respectful to them,” Bowen continued, “but we want to stamp our authority on the game, and we need to start doing that now.
“'Momentum' is the big word. I look at the Leeds game and we were disappointed to not leave [Elland Road] with three points after going ahead in the second half. But it’s a tough place to go and a good point in the end.
“We then built on that against Brentford. Again, it was a tough game, but we showed a real spirit [to win 1-0 at the Gtech Community Stadium].”
Success in west London last time out ended a winless run of six matches. And, as such, Bowen and company are well aware of the need to use that cup triumph to push on in the league.
“I think the circumstances make it an even bigger game, but it's one that we're excited for,” Bowen added, alluding to Wolves' 19th position in the table, one point and two places below the Hammers.
The challenge though will be a tough one. And it has been all-change at Wolves since the last meeting between the two sides in October, so there is an element of unknown to how Saturday's opponents will set up.
Julen Lopetegui, Sevilla manager when West Ham overcame the Spanish side to reach the 2021/22 UEFA Europa League quarter finals, has taken charge. The former Real Madrid and Spain coach seeks his first three points on home turf with his new side, with the Hammers out to ensure that milestone does not come on Saturday.
"If you're not playing well and you're losing, you can be more down,” Bowen added. "But if you play well and don’t pick up results, you can still take that little bit of confidence from some of the performances we've been putting in. The last two games away have been tough away games, and we have come away with a win and a draw. We’re moving in the right direction."
Now, it is about the results to back up the improved performances. And while the last trip to Molineux ended in defeat to a Raúl Jiménez winner, David Moyes’ outfit will recall their previous venture to Wolves in 2020/21. That day, Bowen was part of a free-flowing West Ham counter-attack that struck three times in the first half on the way to a 3-2 victory.
We can all agree that a repeat of that match on Saturday would do rather nicely, then?
“It’s about putting our best display on not just for our teammates and staff, but the fans as well,” Bowen explained. “They want to see us play and do better of course. So it's now down to us to do that.”
