I’m a Premier League star and champion of Europe – but I almost became a FARMER and still train on potato fields

FOOTBALLERS tried many different things to keep in shape during the pandemic, but Jarrod Bowen trained on a FARM.

Bowen has become a hero at West Ham since he joined the club from Hull City in January 2022.

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Jarrod Bowen trained on a farm during the pandemic[/caption]

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He won the Conference League with West Ham[/caption]

The forward scored on his first start for the club in a 3-1 win over Southampton.

Bowen, 27, would have to wait a while for his next as the Covid-19 pandemic put a stop to football across Europe.

During the break from football, he maintained his fitness by training on a farm.

Bowen claimed that the ground on a farm has helped him with muscle injuries.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: “It’s a bit like running on sand, but a bit thicker.

“I’ve found it really good for muscle injuries and, because I’ve had weak ankles, to work on them and stabilise them.

“But also because it is really tough to train on because you feel so slow, when you go running on the grass you feel like you’re a sprinter.

“It’s been my training method for years with my old man.

“He is pretty old school, he doesn’t want me to just go running round a normal field doing football runs, he wants me to run around a potato field with weights in my arms.”

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Bowen also admitted that after rejection from clubs such as Aston Villa, Tottenham and West Brom he came close to quitting football.

If he had he would have opted for a career in farming.

He added: “Maybe in another life I could have been up all night on the farm. The way of life back home is very country-orientated. There’s a lot of farms.

“There’s a lot of routes you can go…and football isn’t usually a route you go down.

“I used to go to the farm with grandad. Now it’s my uncle who owns one. I’d like a farm but when I speak to him, it’s too much hassle.

“The thought of it, ‘oh yeah, I want a farm to do things’, is better than the actual reality.”

Luckily for West Ham, Bowen did get his break at non-league side Hereford and then Hull City.

Bowen became one of the top performers in the Championship which saw the Hammers swoop in with a £25million offer.

Since joining the East London outfit, Bowen has become one of the star players and scored the winning goal in the Europa Conference League final last season.

The forward has also earned a call-up to the England team and made his debut against Hungary.