Reds winger is determined to prove himself in his favourite position at Luton

New signing Josh Bowler can’t wait to get the opportunity to prove himself once more in what will be his favourite position after agreeing a loan move to Luton from Nottingham Forest recently.

The 25-year-old had spent the first part of the season at Championship rivals Preston North End, having been sent there by his parent club in August. However, Bowler struggled for game time while at Deepdale, only making 10 league appearances for the Lilywhites and just six starts, the last of those coming in a 3-1 loss at West Bromwich Albion on New Year's Day.

Having shown his obvious talents in the second tier before, with spells at Hull, Blackpool and Cardiff, leading to 134 appearances, 17 goals and eight assists, then with new Town boss Matt Bloomfield clearly looking to play with real width, having shown that with his formations and January acquisitions, it is something that is right up Bowler’s street.

Deploying a front three in some matches, the Hatters manager also used a 4-2-3-1 at Hillsborough, but all the time with emphasis on width, as he has gone with just the one striker in either Carlton Morris or Elijah Adebayo. With that in mind, January saw not only Bowler arrive, but Millenic Alli and Isaiah Jones, who can play on the flanks as can Thelo Aasgaard, while Alfie Doughty, Jacob Brown, Tahith Chong and Zack Nelson are also options too.

Seeing that kind of system deployed, and discovering just how he will fit in, was music to Bowler's ears, as he said: "It's been unfortunate this year with formations and things like that. It’s not really worked out, so I’m really looking forward to playing in this system, because I can see there's a clear position for me, a clear place where I can play that's my favourite position and where I can flourish.

"The gaffer sees that as well, that's obviously why he wanted to bring me in, so I’m really excited for that. I really want to prove to everyone and put the trust in the gaffer back and show him that I can really deliver. I knew there was interest for a bit now and with the new manager coming in now, he likes my style and how I would fit his system, so I’m just happy it's over the line and I'm raring to go.

"After every chat I wanted to get it done as the feel-good feelings there, the ideas he portrays are really good and suit me as a player. He made it clear that I would fit his system and made it clear what he wanted me to do and I feel like I can definitely deliver that here. I’m just excited to really hit the ground running. I’ve done it before and I've shown what I can do, but I need to show everyone consistently that I can do that not just here and there, not every other game, I need to show that every game.

“I know I can do that, I put the work in off the match-day field, it's just about showing that on the pitch and that all comes with confidence and with the backing and in the right system, with the right manager. I definitely know that here is the right place to be and I've got all those fundamentals to do that, so I'm really excited to get going.”

With Bowler having started off his career as a youngster at QPR, there were high hopes for just what he could achieve when snapped up by Everton for £1.5m in July 2017 having made just one senior appearance for the R’s. However, he didn’t get a chance to play for the first team while at Goodison Park, as it was when he moved to Blackpool in July 2021 that he really began to catch the eye.

His form persuaded Nottingham Forest to part with over £2m for him back in September 2022, although his time at the City Ground hasn’t panned out exactly how he would have wanted, immediately loaned to Olympiakos, then having further stints with Blackpool and Cardiff before his switch to Preston. Despite not hitting the heights he would have expected just yet, Bowler remains hugely confident in his ability, continuing: “I’ve had my ups and downs as does everyone in their career, but I know it's still there.

"I can do things that maybe others can't, I’ve got abilities in my locker that I know can be beneficial for the team, that I’ve shown at Blackpool, that I’ve shown at Cardiff on occasions and I feel like I’ve shown this year as well. Obviously the opportunities haven’t arisen as much as I would like, so I’ve come here to get that, come here to show that and hopefully I get everyone on my side, get the fans on my side and prove to them I’m a good player."

On how he intends to do that, Bowler stated: “I’m just going to be exciting. I can be frustrating at times as every time I get it I want to beat a player. I want to be positive, but if I get that chance to get at a player six, seven, eight times, I know I’m going to beat him several times and I’m going to create something. I just need the backing and the confidence from everyone when I’m on the ball and it's my job to do that, get them off their seats. But whenever I get it I want to be positive, I want to make something happen. I want to beat a player, use my dribbling skills to create something and get people excited.”

Brought in with 16 games of a thoroughly disappointing Championship campaign to go, then Bowler, who made his debut as a second half substitute in the 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday last weekend, knows his first task is ensuring Luton climb free of the relegation zone. The Hatters head to Sunderland on Wednesday night two points adrift, but with games in hand over Derby County and Portsmouth.

Having seen just what the squad he has joined possesses, the new signing is confident too, adding: “It’s not been the ideal season for Luton, but I don’t think anyone's doubting the quality of the team, or people's fight, or anything like that. It's just not panned out how we've expected, but the beauty of it is there's still plenty of games to go.

"The new manager's in, he's got new ideas, fresh ideas and the boys are buying into it, I can already tell. It’s exciting times so it's just about getting out of this rut that we're in and push on from there because everyone knows Luton should be much higher than they are. It's definitely doable. I’ve got a lot of experience in the Championship now, I know it inside out, I know what's to come. I’ve been in relegation battles, I’ve been in good seasons as well, so I’ve got a wealth of experience to help.”