The 18-year-old wonderkid who has cost Ronaldo Koeman’s Everton £4.5m despite playing just 20-minutes of football for QPR
Football Whispers takes a closer look at new Toffees starlet Josh Bowler as he joins Premier League outfit
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EVERTON and Ronald Koeman have spent big this summer in an effort to bridge the gap to the top six clubs in the Premier League.
The Toffees have brought in Jordan Pickford, Michael Keane, Davy Klaassen and Sandro Ramirez as they splashed the cash.
However, Everton aren’t only focused on signing stars for today.
They’ve also recruited younger players who have the potential to break into the first-team in the coming years.
And on those is midfielder Josh Bowler.
And our friends at have profiled the 18-year-old, who joined the Toffees from QPR for a fee that could rise to £4.25m.
EVERTON TRANSFER NEWS
Who is Josh Bowler and where does he come from?
Raised in Chertsey, a town in Surrey on the right bank of the River Thames, Bowler spent the formative years of his football career playing for Fulham before joining west London rivals Queens Park Rangers at the age of 14 in August 2013.
A naturally left-footed midfielder who can play on either flank or through the middle, Bowler impressed the R’s coaching staff as he moved through the youth ranks at Loftus Road.
While a second-year scholar, Bowler was handed an 18-month professional contract in February. He would go on to notch eight times in all competitions to end the campaign as the Under-18s’ top scorer.
He also featured regularly for the Under-23s.
Bowler’s performances were rewarded on the final day of the campaign with a call-up to the first-team squad. He was named on the bench for a trip to Norwich City and, although Rangers were beaten 4-0, the youngster was afforded 21 minutes of Championship football by manager Ian Holloway.
“I got told that I would be on the bench on the morning of the game, so I prepared myself to come on,” he told .
“Then, in the second half, the gaffer called me over and that’s when things really hit home. It was a great moment for me. We didn’t perform how we wanted to but the 2,000 QPR fans who travelled were superb with me.”
In his 21 minutes on the pitch, Bowler played one key pass and completed the other three he attempted. It was a short but assured display and one that affirmed his quality to watching scouts.
Bowler’s Goodison switch
Less than a month after Bowler’s first-team debut, Everton made their move. The Toffees submitted two bids – the first of which was reportedly £500,00 and the second was £1.5m – but both were rejected by Rangers.
The club offered Bowler a new contract at the start of June but, according to Sky Sports, the youngster turned down an improved deal amid interest from the Merseyside club.
Everton were always expected to return with a higher offer but that didn’t stop Holloway from including Bowler in the first-team squad who travelled out to Portugal at the end of June for pre-season training.
However, his switch to Everton was confirmed less than two weeks later. Bowler signed a three-year deal at Goodison after completing a move which could rise to over £4m in add-ons.
QPR received an initial £1.5m which, when you consider Bowler had played only 21 minutes of first-team football, isn’t bad business. However, Rangers director of football Les Ferdinand was disappointed to lose the talented youngster.
"I had a chat with Josh and his dad in May and told him that he would play for our first team quicker than Everton's,” Ferdinand said.
"I made all the points about the advantages of being here at QPR and hoped it resonated with him We hoped to keep hold of him, but when a Premier League club comes knocking on the door, they have the finances to make a move."
Bowler will join up with Everton’s Under-23 side for the forthcoming campaign, where he will be joined by fellow new summer recruits Nathangelo Markelo, Anton Donkor and Boris Mathis.]
The Toffees’ development squad won Premier League 2 last season and Bowler is looking forward to the challenge of making the step up into a top flight academy system.
He told : “This is a club on the up at every level. I can’t wait to get started, meet the other lads and begin working with David Unsworth.
“I’m a direct player, I feel like I can bring excitement in the final third and this is the perfect place for me to continue my education and development.”
