Jarrod Bowen paid tribute to the West Ham fans after he netted the dramatic winner that ended the club’s long wait for a major trophy.
With the match level and seemingly destined for extra-time, Bowen got on the end of Lucas Paqueta’s pass in the 90th minute and found the back of the net, as West Ham beat Fiorentina 2-1 in the Europa Conference League final.
It is the club’s first European trophy since 1965, and their first in any major competition for 43 years, and it comes at the end of a season that for many months was overshadowed by the threat of relegation.
David Moyes’ side secured their Premier League survival though with time to spare and then completed the job in Prague, with a win that books their place in the Europa League next season.
Reflecting on a goal that earns his place in the club’s history books, Bowen admitted he was close to tears as he hailed the support the players had received.
“I obviously dreamed of scoring, but to score the winner in the last minute - it’s what you always say you want to do,” he told BT Sport.
“To do it in front of these fans. I thought I was going to cry. I’m just happy, I can’t put it into words.
“We had a dream, we haven’t had the best season, myself included, but to do what we’ve done tonight for these fans - we’ve said before, we see it all on Instagram, all the fans. To give them this moment, I’m over the moon.
He added: “I said leading up to this, it’s the biggest game of my career. The emotion, I thought it was going to go to extra-time but there was time for one more chance. I’m just so happy that we won it for everyone. Look at everyone, it means so much. I’m over the moon.”
