Jarrod Bowen to Chelsea would bring Joe Cole heartbreak for West Ham fans | OneFootball

The end of a treasured relationship is painful, but it’s often misunderstood how the grief can remain abstract for a while.

A certain numbness can postpone the moment when it all sinks in, as the brain frantically scrambles for coping mechanisms and bargaining chips.

But reality still finds a way of leaving a bruise. Perhaps it’s when you see their Instagram story, smiling and unaffected while you remain bedridden.

For most, it’s learning that they’ve moved on with somebody else. Even worse if their new partner is the opposite of their type and therefore undeserving of their affection in your completely objective view.

Seeing that Chelsea are interested in signing Jarrod Bowen isn’t quite as lethal, but the hearts of every West Ham fan will have sunk. Anyone but them.

All season, I’ve been struck by how similar West Ham’s campaign felt to 2002/03; from the early complacency to the late rally that wasn’t quite enough and the sense it was all avoidable with the bare minimum of forward planning.

I’ve been so fixated on reading the tea leaves that I’ve neglected to consider the real reason that 2003 stung so badly: the squandering of all those brilliant players.

Paolo Di Canio was already leaving regardless and the likes of Trevor Sinclair, Frederic Kanoute and David James were all talented, but dispensable in the circumstances.

No, it was the sale of the academy lads which made it all feel so futile. Glen Johnson had only just broken into the first team, but was whisked off by newly minted Chelsea to sit on their bench.

Jermain Defoe stuck around until January, despite handing in a transfer request the day after relegation.

He was sent off three times in Division One before signing for Spurs. Michael Carrick also moved to White Hart Lane in 2004.

But Joe Cole’s £6.6million move to Chelsea was the moment stoicism melted and anger set in.

There was little realistic chance of Cole staying, but the symbolism of him joining a bitter local rival prompted accusations that the West Ham board were ‘selling off the family silver’.

Twenty-three years on, there had been hopes Bowen would stick around. Approaching 30 and out of the England squad, would he have much to lose by trying to get us promoted again? Does he not know that Lincoln in the autumn is supposed to be lovely?

The forward has become a totem figure. Not just for Prague and marrying Danny Dyer’s daughter, but for an unflashiness that speaks to how West Ham fans view themselves and their club.

Even as the goals dried up in the second half of last season, there was always a chance of something happening with Bowen on the pitch.

Only Bruno Fernandes and Rayan Cherki registered more Premier League assists and they didn’t spend half a season trying to tee up Niclas Fullkrug.

But the economic reality of a £100million black hole and an uncaring owner concerned with covering his own back means this all points in one direction.

Apart from him, Tomas Soucek and perhaps new cult hero Taty Castellanos, none of the current West Ham team will be overly mourned should they leave this summer.

With this news, the only hope is that Bowen will choose somewhere other than Chelsea, a club where players are treated as pig slop to fatten Clearlake’s bank balance and sense of self-regard.

There won’t be a shortage of suitors and some of them will even have European football next year.

While Hammers will see him as the modern-day Cole, others will identify Bowen as their Leandro Trossard; a no-brainer, cheapish signing who helps raise the floor significantly.

The prospect of watching him move on and the squandering of our crown jewel will be confirmation of West Ham’s diminished status.

And the sight of Bowen running down the wing at Stamford Bridge will be more heartbreaking than relegation itself.