Jurgen Klopp has succeeded in reinstating the feel-good factor on the red half of Merseyside, with his team perched in first place in the Premier League, with the interminable 2022/23 campaign now well behind fans of a Liverpool persuasion.

Of course, the current season has just reached its 16th matchweek, and there is still plenty of action to store, with the Reds facing a demanding festive period.

However, after coming fifth last season, Klopp’s side can take great comfort in the fact that they are once again a significant player, and while Champions League football is out of reach until next season, there is still plenty at stake, not least the Premier League crown.

With the summer transfer activity having been successful in repairing the faulty engine room, Liverpool are now ready to invest on multiple areas of the field, and while the defense appears to require the most attention, rumours about forward-thinking players persist.

In the summer, Al-Ittihad apparently weren’t satisfied with raiding Anfield for Fabinho and launched a stunning £150m raid for Mohamed Salah, and while Liverpool were reportedly uninterested in entertaining the advance, plans were reportedly drawn up to sign West Ham United’s Jarrod Bowen as a replacement.

Despite signing a new contract at the London Stadium in October, Bowen remains on Liverpool’s radar, and journalist Dean Jones has revealed what he believes it would take to lure him away.

He went on to explain: “If you consider that they’ve lost Declan Rice, who was their most valuable player, for over £100m, then if anyone was to come asking for Jarrod Bowen, they’re going to say ‘Well, we want the same as what we’ve got for Declan Rice then’ because if anything, Jarrod Bowen is even more important to them because, at times, he is the only player who is weighing in reliably with goals.”

While it is unreasonable for the Hammers to make genuine demands in the £105 million range for Declan Rice, widely considered as one of Europe’s top midfielders, it does highlight Bowen’s value to his club. To be honest, this would not be a smooth transaction…

Bowen joined West Ham from Hull City in January 2020 in a move worth at least £20 million, and it’s no accident that the club’s meteoric rise has coincided with Bowen’s own.

With 50 goals and 34 assists in 177 appearances, including the game-winning goal against Fiorentina in the Europa League final in June, he has been the Hammers’ attacking lynchpin and justifiably captured the attention of juggernauts such as Liverpool.

This season, he’s been in devastatingly prolific form, with ten goals and three assists from 19 appearances across all competitions, prompting talkSPORT pundit Tony Cascarino to remark that he’s in the “Salah club” due to the technique of his striking power.

According to Sofascore, nine of these goals have come from 15 appearances in the English Premier League, with the England international complimenting his shooting success with 3.9 ball recoveries and 1.3 tackles per game, showcasing his versatility on the pitch.

According to FBref, the £120k-per-week machine ranks among the top 15% of positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues for shot-creating actions, the top 5% for progressive carries, the top 18% for successful take-ons, the top 1% for interceptions, and the top 2% for blocks per 90 over the past year.

Bowen, who is quick and direct, would be able to play a similar role as Salah – if not to the same celestial standard – but he might establish himself as the club’s next-best wideman, possibly even surpassing Luis Diaz.

Diaz has been outstanding since joining Liverpool from Porto for an initial cost of £37 million in January 2022, scoring 16 goals and providing nine assists in 66 appearances.

But, since returning from a season-ending injury at the end of last season, the Colombian has shown to be a constant threat on Klopp’s left wing, though he hasn’t duplicated the same success that saw him score four goals and contribute three assists in his first 11 Premier League starts.

This season, the £55k-per-week ace is only making 0.9 key passes and recovering 2.9 balls per game in the Premier League, scoring three times and creating one huge chance in 15 outings.

This is a significant drop from his first season in the English top division, as his dribbling rate (2.4) has nearly half to 1.3 this term.

Furthermore, in 2021/22, he was making 1.5 critical passes per game and completing 88% of his passes; this season, he is still completing 80% of his balls but has clearly lost some of his snap and crispness.

While a tactical modification in Klopp’s system is certainly part of the reason that his game has shifted slightly, there is no concealing the fact that he is being outperformed by the likes of Bowen, who would be an incredible acquisition to strengthen Liverpool’s chances.

Diaz is really talented, and that should not be overlooked, as the 26-year-old now ranks among the top 20% of positional peers in goals, the top 9% in pass completion, and the top 19% in successful take-ons per 90.

But there’s no denying that Bowen is developing into a very fantastic goalscoring presence for West Ham, something he could easily replicate at Anfield by utilizing his versatility to dazzle across multiple situations.

Diaz has only scored five goals this season and has yet to assist a teammate in the Premier League, and while there is every reason to believe that he will continue to perform and add to his totals in the coming months, Bowen would be an upgrade.