By Conor Hogan

As is the case with most clubs, being a West Ham fan on the internet can be a great experience.

Sites like X, TikTok and Instagram allow Hammers fans to come together to celebrate — or, more often, commiserate — with each other after watching their side at the weekend.

X in particular has given us some iconic West Ham moments: West Ham Clips’ alternative commentary, the Fake Carlton era and, most recently, the Graham Potter face-swapping trend.

However, there is another side to the West Ham online experience that can make supporting the club feel draining — the frequent negativity and fickleness that circulates within parts of the online fanbase.

Of course, this isn’t exclusive to West Ham, nor are the Irons faithful the worst culprits. But the accessibility of the internet allows some rather silly opinions to reach thousands of people.

These kinds of takes are often heat-of-the-moment outbursts of frustration or, worse, intentionally crafted to bait fellow Hammers into engaging for clout and attention.

I bring this up because there has been a recent opinion doing the rounds online — one that I simply cannot wrap my head around: the idea that Jarrod Bowen should be dropped from the starting eleven.

Yes. Jarrod Bowen. The Hammers’ skipper and talisman — the player West Ham have relied on for results countless times — should apparently be benched because he had one poor game against Liverpool.

Obviously, many Hammers fans don’t share this view, but after Sunday, enough people were asking the question that it genuinely made me stop and stare at my screen in disbelief.

Sure, Bowen hasn’t scored since Nuno’s first game in charge back in October, but he has still looked sharp in recent matches — particularly against Bournemouth and Newcastle, where he was excellent.

The fact that some supporters would rather see the perennially inconsistent Luis Guilherme start ahead of the captain is concerning.

The Brazilian is the only real alternative West Ham have in Bowen’s position and, despite showing flashes of talent, he has proven he’s not yet ready for Premier League football.

Ultimately, Bowen — like Declan Rice in 2022/23 and Dimitri Payet in 2016/17 — is a victim of the ridiculously high standards he’s set. Those players also had dips in form, yet no one was suggesting Conor Coventry should start alongside Lucas Paquetá in midfield in 2022.

This may sound like an overreaction to a view most Hammers fans would likely dismiss, but it highlights one of the many pitfalls of the online football experience: constant exposure to spur-of-the-moment, knee-jerk opinions that are often fickle and irrational.

Bowen has had dips before — most notably at the end of 2022 when, like now, he was competing for a World Cup place with England. He overcame that rut and delivered a superb second half of the season. I believe he’ll do the same again soon.