Alan Shearer was blown away by 'incredible' West Ham star in Nottingham Forest win

Alan Shearer, the Premier League’s all-time record goalscorer, knows a thing or two about putting the ball in the back of the net. So it goes without saying that he liked what he saw from one West Ham United ace on Sunday afternoon.

The Southampton, Blackburn and Newcastle legend watched on as the Hammers ended their winless streak in some style at the City Ground.

On a day dominated by that Lucas Paqueta celebration – Graham Potter lauded the Brazil international’s ‘incredible’ focus in the midst of such intense speculation – West Ham United’s most talismanic presence also opened his account for the new campaign.

Matthew Upson called Jarrod Bowen’s finish ‘world-class’. Alan Pardew likened the captain to England icon John Barnes when watching him scythe through Nottingham Forest’s defence in search of an even greater goal in stoppage time.

And Alan Shearer, speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, was keen to highlight the extreme difficulty of the finish executed with an almost effortless swagger by the irrepressible Jarrod Bowen.

And he should know.

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Alan Shearer hails Jarrod Bowen’s ‘incredible’ finish in West Ham United win

Latching onto a surging Crysencio Summerville run – talking about stand-out performers, Nuno Espirito Santo admitted that Nottingham Forest couldn’t cope with West Ham’s supersub – Bowen needed only one touch to curl a deadly finish beyond Matz Sels’ grasp.

“Bowen’s finish was incredible! Walking away from the ball and then to get that whip [to put it] in the corner…” Shearer smiles, the skipper letting his football do the talking after Bowen confronted a furious fan after the Carabao Cup collapse at Wolves.

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“Particularly after he had that little altercation the other day! For him to get that opening goal was a massive moment.

“Big, big win for the fans, for him, and for Graham Potter.”

If Bowen’s finish is an early contender for West Ham’s Goal of the Season award, then he would have had the voting wrapped up already had Callum Wilson not intervened following a Maradona-esque charge through the Forest backline.

“Bowen was going to get one of the goals of the season!” a rueful Pardew exclaimed on talkSPORT. “He goes on an amazing run, like John Barnes running through Brazil [in 1984].

“Just as he was about to dink it over the goalie, Callum Wilson smashes it into the crowd! He must have been gutted.”

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Gary Lineker says Nottingham Forest win was huge for Graham Potter

Wilson, his own mood boosted after a clever header put the gloss on a 3-0 away win, apologised to Bowen in a gleeful post-match presser.

With the international break just around the corner, West Ham could hardly have picked a more ideal moment to raise morale.

“I didn’t see it being 3-0! Great result for West Ham and a great result for Graham Potter, and seriously important for him,” Gary Lineker adds in conversation with fellow Three Lions legend Shearer.

“You know, you get that silly feeling sometimes when you think it might go a bit wrong for Forest. I don’t like to talk about managers like this but when you speak about the owner publicly… well, there was so much riding on this game for both managers.

“You’re right,” Shearer agrees, the build-up dominated by Potter’s future and a fall-out between Nuno and Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis. “Because of what has been said with Nuno and the really difficult situation that West Ham have been in.

“I mean, they’ve looked dreadful haven’t they? Potter was under huge pressure. So for them to go there and batter Forest…”

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