West Ham winger Jarrod Bowen has vowed to take his call-up to the England squad in his stride.

The 27-year-old spent almost a year in the international wilderness before being recalled by Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate back in October and, speaking about his chances of playing for his country, he said:

“If I’m playing upfront I’ve got Harry Kane and Ollie Watkins to get ahead of! But no, I’ve been picked on my form playing here and every time you go into the international break you have to do it with that mindset of doing what you’ve been doing at club level.”

“Don’t try to do too much, don’t try to impress too much. I always think, for me personally, that can backfire on you. For me, it’s going in with that same mindset and the same enjoyment of football. When you get your opportunity it’s important that you take it.”

Bowen has it all to do to get minutes

While the Hammers star has been in very impressive form this season, scoring 18 goals and providing 7 assists in 37 appearances, he won’t be picked to play upfront for England.

As he says himself, there are plenty of other strikers in the squad who are ahead of him in the pecking order. Bowen is more likely to be given chances in wide areas but, even then, the competition is fierce.

Arsenal‘s Bukayo Saka and Manchester City’s Phil Foden have been outstanding this campaign, and both have excelled on the right wing for their clubs, which is also the position Bowen prefers to play in.

The West Ham player has two friendlies to make his mark

With the Three Lions playing Brazil and Belgium in friendly matches, it will give Southgate a chance to experiment. It means that, hopefully, Bowen will be picked to start one of the two fixtures.

Based on his comments, it seems Bowen is determined to make the most of any opportunities that come his way.