Johnnie Jackson’s summer revamp has today gathered pace with the addition of Josh Neufville from Luton Town.
Predominantly a winger, Josh will officially join us on a two-year contract on 1 July after his contract ends with the newly promoted Premier League club.
After working with Josh previously, Craig Cope is fully aware of the player’s qualities.
“We brought Josh to Solihull Moors on a first loan from Luton after he came highly recommended from a good contact,” said our Head of Football Operations. “We were going through a tricky situation at the time and Josh did very well for us for a month to eight weeks.
“It’s been a great start to business for us and I believe that Josh is really going to suit what we’re trying to do here. We wanted to be proactive and be ahead of the game, so getting this deal done early is really pleasing.
“Johnnie Jackson and Terry Skiverton have both met him and gone through our plans for next season and Josh fits that bill. With Josh in now, we can start looking at other areas of the squad.”
Of course, Josh is our second summer arrival after we last week announced that Jake Reeves had returned to Wimbledon after helping us to promotion in his last spell here.
Born in Luton, Josh started his career locally with Bedfordshire club Crawley Green. He joined the Hatters youth system in 2011 – and he even has memories of our dramatic penalty shoot-out victory at Manchester in that same year.
He signed his first professional deal in 2018 and shortly afterwards made his first-team debut. Since 2019 Josh has had loan spells at Solihull Moors, Woking and Yeovil Town, where he worked with our Assistant Manager Terry Skiverton.
Shortly after signing here, Josh talked passionately about becoming an AFC Wimbledon player, pointing to the Club’s history and his meeting with our management team as key factors.
“I met with Johnnie Jackson and within the first 10 minutes I knew that this is where I wanted to be,’ said Josh. “Everything about the club, especially the history, appealed to me a lot.
“I knew there was interest at the end of the season. I also know Terry Skiverton well and he was in contact with my representatives. I’m delighted we got it done early. I’m excited to be on board and to be with the lads as soon as pre-season starts. Joining the right club was key for me and having the right people around me.”
Asked about his strengths as a player, Josh concluded: “I can play in a few different positions - basically wherever I’m told to play to help out the team. My strongest attributes are that I’m powerful, pacy, athletic and with a lot of energy.
“I can play left-wing, right-wing, up front and left-back. I’m versatile and can help the team out. Given how we’ll want to play – pressing and being young, athletic, and hungry – I’m looking forward to being a part of that.”
Josh, who gained League Two experience on loan at Sutton United last season, is relishing the opportunity to link-up with Terry Skiverton again.
“I first met Terry when I was around 19 at Yeovil,” said Josh. “I learned a lot from him as a person and as a character.
“He helped me on and off the pitch, with things like recovery, what to look at, and who to be around to improve my game. On the pitch he helped me with my positional play, even though he was a centre-half. He was a big influence on me coming here.”
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