Jarrod Bowen has hailed West Ham’s character after his side fought back from two goals down to earn a ‘massive point’ against Arsenal.
Bowen’s second-half equaliser secured the Hammers a 2-2 draw with the Premier League leaders, a valuable point in the club’s bid for survival this season.
West Ham had appeared set for a difficult afternoon as goals from Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard put Arsenal into a two-goal lead inside ten minutes, but Said Benrahma’s penalty brought the hosts back into the game at the London Stadium.
Bowen’s brilliant finish – which came just two minutes after Bukayo Saka had missed a penalty for Arsenal – levelled the score after the break, as the winger raced onto a lofted pass to fire past Aaron Ramsdale.
The draw gives West Ham a four-point cushion from the relegation places and Bowen believes a lack of expectation helped the Hammers.
“It’s a massive point. Coming into this, no one probably expected us to get anything from the game. We used that to our advantage and we went at them,” Bowen told Sky Sports.
“If you give them time on the ball they can create. It wasn’t the start we wanted but we dug in and nearly nicked it at the end.
”We started on the front foot but it was two lapses of concentration in the penalty box and we got punished. The character in this group has never gone and we never let our heads go.”
Bowen’s goal was his fifth of the Premier League season, as he ghosted in behind Gabriel to earn West Ham a result.
“I made the run and you just hope someone puts it back in the area. I hit it well and saw it go in and the noise from the crowd was unbelievable.”
