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Premier League hits and misses: Jarrod Bowen makes timely West Ham return as Dejan Kulusevski inspires Tottenham

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Premier League hits and misses: Jarrod Bowen makes timely West Ham return as Dejan Kulusevski inspires Tottenham

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Jarrod Bowen's return could not have been timelier for West Ham. Making his first start in a month after four games out injured, Bowen proved to be the difference in the 2-1 home win over Everton. He won the free-kick that resulted in Aaron Cresswell curling in West Ham's opener and then he scored the winner. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player It was a reminder to everyone why he had looked nailed on to earn his first England call-up for last month's squad, before agonisingly picking up a foot injury in the defeat at Liverpool. But Hammers boss David Moyes has no doubts Bowen will still be in England manager Gareth Southgate's thoughts come the summer. "If he finishes the season well then he will be back in contention for those [England] games in June," Moyes said. Premier League table Watch Premier League highlights Live football on Sky Sports Get Sky Sports Such is Moyes' trust in Bowen, he had no problem in fast-tracking the forward into the starting XI against Everton after Manuel Lanzini did not make the squad following a car crash on Thursday, which thankfully saw the Argentine unharmed. "It was only really until yesterday when I knew Lanzini wasn't going to make it," Moyes revealed. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player "I thought with [not having] Lanzini's quality on the ball, and he's played really well for us, do we start Jarrod for 50 or 60 minutes or bring him on for 30 minutes? Because I don't think he's quite all there yet. It's not his fitness, I think it's just his game, and he was a bit worried about it." But there was nothing concerning about the 25-year-old's performance against Everton, as he lasted 70 minutes before being substituted. Moyes added: "I have never really been that worried about Jarrod. He said he didn't know if he would be sharp enough when you've been out for a while but he's got such high standards now." But what would have delighted Moyes the most about Bowen's display is the way he immediately integrated into the side as he formed a threatening quartet with Pablo Fornals, Said Benrahma and Michail Antonio. Together they terrorised the Everton defence all afternoon as they combined for nine shots on goal and between them had 20 of West Ham's 22 touches in the opposition box. Even if Lanzini does return, it is difficult to see Moyes changing that front four for Thursday's huge Europa League quarter-final first leg against Lyon at the London Stadium. One thing is for sure, Bowen's return will have the French side worried.Declan Olley Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Lucas Moura and Steven Bergwijn stepped off the bench to combine for Tottenham's fifth in their thrashing of Newcastle. It was a reminder of the quality Antonio Conte has to call upon and the Italian made a point of highlighting the options those two players in particular give him. But they're being kept out of the side by a brilliant 21-year-old right now. Dejan Kulusevski has made a mockery of suggestions it takes time to adapt to the Premier League. The January loan signing's cross for Heung-Min Son's goal on Sunday made it five assists in his first 10 appearances in this competition. The last player to reach that tally so quickly at his age or younger was a certain Eden Hazard. It would be a big call to say he's on a similar path to the brilliant Belgian but Conte is convinced Spurs have brought in a gem of their own. "For Tottenham this is a great signing for the present and future," he said in his post-match press conference. Spurs have a two-year agreement with Juventus for Kulusevski and an obligation to buy at the end of it if certain criteria are met. Right now that seems like a done deal. The skill, pace and effectiveness he brings in the final third is hard to find - especially at such a young age. While Conte has spoken about the improvement every player has made through his coaching, there's no doubt the arrival of Kulusevski has given the team a boost too. His link-up play with Son and Harry Kane is so fluid. Rodrigo Bentancur signing, also from Juventus, is another key transfer in terms of Tottenham's revival. Conte says the pair have made Spurs more 'complete'. If they can sign a couple more of that standard in the summer, they really will be going places.Peter Smith Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player The misery continues for Everton. Bowen inflicted more away-day pain for Frank Lampard's side but here they were the authors of their own downfall, beaten by their own lapse in concentration before the red mist descended. Michael Keane captained the side in the absence of Seamus Coleman but it was his tired challenge on Michail Antonio which made life more difficult moments after West Ham had regained the lead. The Merseysiders have received a red card in each of their last three Premier League matches (including Jonjoe Kenny vs Wolves, Allan vs Newcastle) becoming the first side to see red in three games in a row since Watford in December 2017. Lampard had questioned his players' bottle - or words to that effect - after they capitulated at Crystal Palace in the FA Cup last time out, and they conceded poorly again just five minutes after equalising when Bowen struck. Keane's second yellow card capped another miserable road trip for Lampard, and he simply cannot afford yet another fruitless jaunt away from Goodison Park on Wednesday in that crucial game against Burnley at Turf Moor, live on Sky Sports. Lampard said: "The next game is always the most important and the next one is a competitor down in the same end of the table. Nobody gets an easy game at Burnley - it's a fact at all times so it's about continuing the application and character of our performance today." Everton remain safe, for now, but defeat to Sean Dyche's side would close the gap to the bottom three to just a point. As Richarlison trudged disconsolately down the tunnel, Lampard must pull his troops together for the battle that lies ahead.Ben Grounds Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Up until being withdrawn with 20 minutes to play in Newcastle's defeat to Tottenham, Chris Wood had played every minute of every game for the Toon since joining from Burnley. He has been Eddie Howe's focal point without finding the back of the net at a regular rate. Far from it in fact, scoring just one goal. That's fine when you are winning games and team-mates are chipping in with goals. However, Newcastle have now lost three games on the spin and Wood was anonymous in north London, marked out of the game by a combination of Eric Dier and Christian Romero. He had just 15 touches, the lowest by any outfield player who started the game. If you stretch it back further, he only has found the net once in his last 17 starts for Burnley and Newcastle. Sharing the goals around in the absence of Callum Wilson, who is their top scorer with 10 goals, remains a big problem for Howe. Wood is a massive presence but his lack of movement does make it easy to mark him when you don't get players around him. What are the options then? Dwight Gayle remains a Newcastle player but has played just 29 minutes of football in a season of bench warming and hasn't started a Premier League game for almost a year. Yet, his skillset of quick movement and a natural ability to find space in the box might be worth considering in the next few weeks. So, is Howe thinking about going in a different direction? No, it seems, judging by his post-match comments. He said: "It was a difficult one for Chris, he's had four games [on international duty], a lot of travelling, that's why we withdrew him to keep him in good condition." Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player The greatest day in Brentford's history? Possibly. The best performance of the season? It can't be far off. But however you categorise Brentford's shocking, stunning 4-1 win at Chelsea there's no denying Thomas Frank and his players deserve huge credit for pulling off a result few would have thought possible. Before kick-off, it seemed Brentford's Premier League survival was more likely to rest on a clash with Watford in a couple of weeks' time. Instead their first league win at west London rivals Chelsea in 83 years may just have secured their status in the top flight. If so, it's an achievement which owes everything to the key ingredients which set this Brentford team apart. First there is the manager, whose surprise switch to a back three caught out the world and European champions. His high-quality coaching has created a team able to mix a high press and a low block and frustrate their opponents with both. Credit to these players, too: from the bravery to take the game to Chelsea early on, to the character to respond to Antonio Rudiger's stunner and push for more. As Frank says, this is a unique group. And then there is Christian Eriksen, who has written another chapter in his wonderful comeback from the cardiac arrest he survived last summer. A first Premier League goal since 2019 was reward for another classy display in the middle of the park. He has inspired the players around him. Capturing the enormity of Saturday's win isn't easy to do - but Brentford supporters will treasure an unforgettable day.Peter Smith Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Thomas Tuchel was at a loss to explain Chelsea's 4-1 home defeat to Brentford. Fatigue from the international break? A lack of preparation time? Goalkeeper Edouard Mendy jaded from the huge effort to help Senegal to the World Cup? Even a change in the weather was suggested. In the end, he put it down to a "strange 10 minutes" and said he wouldn't dwell too long on it. It seems a sensible approach because whatever went wrong, Chelsea must shake it off and regain their focus. Their players have admirably continued to deliver despite all the distr
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