Josh Bowler is already facing Luton Town problem that ruined his Preston North End stint | OneFootball

The winger was once tracked by the top clubs in the Championship - now he struggles for gametime in a relegation battle

Josh Bowler was once the talk of the Championship thanks to his dazzling wing displays – but now he cannot command a starting place in one of the division’s lower sides.

Nottingham Forest’s forgotten man is onto his fourth-straight loan to a second-tier side, with Luton Town borrowing Bowler from the Premier League side in January.

However, the winger has encountered the same problem at Kenilworth Road as he faced at Preston North End amid a continued struggle for regular minutes.

Josh Bowler's Luton Town déjà vu after Preston North End disappointment

When Bowler arrived at Preston North End, he probably wouldn’t have envisaged a wing-back role at Deepdale.

He had arrived towards the tail end of the August 2024 transfer window at a club still reeling from the departure of Ryan Lowe; new manager Paul Heckingbottom had been in the role for just under two weeks when Bowler was signed on loan from Forest.

At first Bowler played on the wing, playing healthy minutes in his first three appearances. Preston were winless in all three matches, leading to a rethink, with Bowler dropped to the bench.

Unfortunately for the former Everton man, that coincided with a change in Preston’s fortunes, with the Lilywhites going on a five-game unbeaten run with Bowler not playing.

In the meantime, Heckingbottom was installing his three-man central defence pivotal to his tactics – which did not involve wingers. As such, Bowler’s time on the pitch was in an unfamiliar role at wing-back.

With the January transfer window approaching, it was clear that the loan deal was not working for either party.

Preston agreed to relinquish Bowler early, allowing him to join Luton for the rest of the campaign. Bowler left Preston without a goal or assist from 10 Championship appearances - six of which were starts - marking yet another underwhelming loan stint for the winger.

Similarly to his arrival at Preston, though, Bowler joined Luton in a state of flux. The relegation-threatenedHatters had just sacked Rob Edwards three weeks before his arrival, with new manager Matt Bloomfield adjusting his tactics as he got to grips with his new role.

With Luton still struggling, Bloomfield has switched to a three-man central defence – again playing without wingers.

Once more, Bowler’s available game-time is now restricted to a wing-back role, limiting his opportunities to play.

Josh Bowler’s Championship stock has dropped in recent years

Bowler is a player clearly looking for a permanent home, with his last few seasons as a professional seeing multiple loan spells to various clubs.

The winger’s displays for Blackpool during the 2021/22 season caught the eye of Scott Parker at AFC Bournemouth, with the south coast club looking into Bowler during the January 2022 transfer window.

However, no move to Cherries materialised, and when the summer came around, their interest had abated.

Instead, it was Bournemouth’s promotion rivals, Nottingham Forest, who swooped in for Bowler.

It appeared that Bowler had finally received his chance in the Premier League, but instead he found himself instantly loaned to Forest’s Greek sister club, Olympiakos. But Bowler’s move to Greece marked the start of a nomadic period for the 26-year-old.

He made just seven appearances for the Greek giants, leading to his loan to Olympiakos being cut short.

That paved the way for a loan switch back to his former club, Blackpool, where he enjoyed a fruitful spell despite relegation to League One.

To date, Bowler has not featured for Nottingham Forest, nor appeared in a competitive matchday squad for the Tricky Trees, and ought to be looking to seal a permanent exit this summer.

He spent the entirety of the last campaign on loan at Cardiff City but was marred by inconsistency, scoring five times in 38 Championship appearances.

The Bluebirds did not look to sign the winger on a permanent basis last summer, paving the way for Bowler to head out on another loan move.

Preston North End came calling, but as mentioned above, Bowler did not fit into Paul Heckingbottom’s plans – with gam-etime limited to a low amount of minutes in an unfamiliar wing-back role.

With his loan switch to Luton also looking like it won’t work out, Bowler must be hoping for a fresh start this summer – where he can start to rebuild his career on a permanent basis.