Jarrod Bowen has been pushing Nuno Espírito Santo to bring Edson Álvarez and Soungoutou Magassa back into the squad. According to sources, he has raised it several times, covering their playing time and their training with the first team. Nuno says he is considering it but hasn’t pulled the trigger.
“These were not heated exchanges by any stretch,” a club source said. “However, Jarrod has expressed that even in training they present a high level of capability that would only strengthen the current squad.”
Magassa spent the summer looking like a man on his way out. He was rumoured to be leaving and removed his West Ham connections from his social media. When offers didn’t materialise, he asked to stay and reportedly blamed bad advice from his agents. He has been on the bench for a couple of fixtures but little more.
Álvarez’s only appearance this season came in the Carabao Cup against Portsmouth, and he hasn’t been in the squad since. He is also caught up in a controversy in Mexico, where a filmmaker has accused people close to him of being behind an alleged kidnapping in November 2024, linked to a dispute over an unpaid documentary. The filmmaker blames Álvarez’s former father-in-law and suggests Álvarez knew. Álvarez categorically denies any involvement and has asked his lawyers to consider action over false claims. Nothing has been established in court.
On paper, Nuno has plenty of midfielders: Divine Mukasa, Arne Engels, Tomas Soucek, Lewis Orford and Moahamadou Kanté all rank ahead of both players. But Kanté has been used more as an attacker, and Nuno’s attacking formation has no holding midfielder. Álvarez and Magassa are the best West Ham have in that role, and the system hasn’t asked for one.
The Mavropanos injury changes things. With the back line thin, a sitting midfielder, or a player who can cover at centre-back, looks far more useful than it did a week ago.
THE FAVORITES
“Jarrod believes their hard-working nature and hunger to play take the intensity of training to a higher level, just because of their quality.”
– A club source
Underneath all of this is a bigger question. Nuno has his favorites, and this season it has been hard to miss.
Manor Solomon has said he has been unwell since the international break and that it has affected his play, yet he keeps starting. Pablo Felipe has struggled to score but remains central to the attacking plan. Morato has had several poor games and keeps his place at left-back. Kyle Walker-Peters has struggled defensively at right-back and keeps getting minutes.
Meanwhile, the alternatives can’t get a look. Adama Boiro, a natural left-back signed on loan with an option to buy, can’t dislodge Morato. Álvarez and Magassa are stuck on the outside. Edvin Austbø has impressed in limited minutes but still couldn’t start when Solomon was feeling ill.
Nuno’s established starters get time to work through their problems, and everyone else struggles to show what they can do.
The club source says Bowen’s argument is as much about attitude as ability. “Jarrod believes their hard-working nature and hunger to play take the intensity of training to a higher level, just because of their quality. Having them more involved would be a benefit to everyone. So he’s going to keep fighting for their place in the squad.”
It is a notable move for a captain, and it suggests he sees the squad as deeper than the lineup shows.
West Ham face West Brom on Saturday with a spot to fill on the bench. Nuno could give it to Álvarez, the more experienced of the two, or to Magassa, who has at least been in the squad recently. If he picks either, the captain’s lobbying has worked. If he doesn’t, it will say that Nuno still trusts the players he has already picked.
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