Josh Scowen: The “rat” who can help Sunderland get out of League One

Josh Scowen signed off at QPR with a wonder goal – but left the club very much under a cloud.

A spectacular volley against Swansea in what turned out to be his penultimate appearance for Rangers was a moment to savour. But Scowen was unhappy at Loftus Road and a possible pre-deadline move was in the offing.

Aside from some abuse on social media, Scowen had been out of favour under successive managers and a number of clubs were made aware of his potential availability. It was time for him to move on.

His signing is a shrewd move by Sunderland, whose promotion challenge will be boosted by what Scowen can offer.

Scowen’s rise and fall

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Scowen’s stock at QPR dropped after an excellent first season following his arrival in 2017.

He joined a club that was severely impacted by financial restrictions and had the look of relegation fodder.

But he played a pivotal role in a relatively successful season in the sense that Rangers quickly amassed more than enough points to avoid a relegation scrap.

The then manager Ian Holloway, who labelled Scowen a “rat” in midfield – which he meant as a compliment – went against his instincts in deploying three centre-backs and three central midfielders for most of that season.

That midfield, of Scowen, Massimo Luongo and Luke Freeman, was the biggest factor in Rangers’ best spells of the campaign. It was the foundation of the side, with Scowen protecting an otherwise abject defence, Freeman adding some spark in attack and Luongo doing a bit of both. It worked.

Three’s a crowd

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Some at board level disagreed and wanted Holloway to ditch the system, as did many fans on social media.

They got their wish when Steve McClaren replaced Holloway in the summer of 2018, intent on changing to a 4-4-2.

With McClaren clear he wanted to play with two rather than three in midfield, he was strongly advised by some of the backroom staff he inherited to make signing a holding midfielder a priority.

It was suggested to McClaren that Scowen, although a very decent Championship player and a very good professional, would struggle in the role earmarked for him and that an alternative would be needed.

In fact, a couple of seemingly viable alternatives had been identified – because Holloway was himself intending to make changes to his midfield in terms of shape and personnel.

Perhaps understandably, given the obvious shortcomings defensively and up front which McClaren was aware of, and the positive contribution Scowen had made at QPR up to that point, the manager disagreed with that assessment.

But once the season began, Scowen indeed struggled, the potential signings previously suggested to McClaren had gone elsewhere, and Rangers were scrambling to sign a defensive midfielder before the transfer window closed. They eventually brought in Geoff Cameron.

That pushed Scowen down the pecking order – and he stayed down it.

McClaren and current manager Mark Warburton are radically different, but one thing they share is an emphasis on ball retention. Like young Paul Smyth – farmed out on loan by both managers – Scowen has been affected by that philosophy more than most.

Proven pedigree

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He does the basics well and his short-range passing is sound. But in terms of the dynamism required on and off the ball in a two-man midfield, Scowen was – as was suggested to McClaren would be the case – found wanting, especially when his confidence took a dip.

That does not change the fact that Scowen is a proven Championship player, having been effective at QPR and previously Barnsley.

He should therefore stand out in League One, particularly given his combative style of play.

The third tier is a quagmire and the key to getting out of it is to recruit players with good attitudes who could play at a higher level. QPR did so with the likes of Gallen, Furlong, Bircham, Rowlands and Shittu.

And Sunderland have made a similar type of signing in Scowen, who is a Championship-level player more than willing and able to battle in League One.

Out of form, and limited in some ways, but a Championship-level player nonetheless.