Louis Moult was a fan favourite at Preston North End for some, as despite never having a consistent run in the side his commitment, effort and off the field activities shone through, and it was a shame his time at Deepdale ended after a prolonged run in the medical room.
After joining Preston from Motherwell in January 2018, Moult found it hard to break into the team under Alex Neil. In his first full season though he scored some memorable goals at home to Blackburn Rovers and a winner away to Nottingham Forest.
At the start of the 2019 season it looked as if he may get his chance after Callum Robinson had left. He scored against Wigan Athletic in the first home game of the season, and started the next away to Swansea City.
Devastatingly for him and the club, Preston suffered a cruciate ligament injury that saw him ruled out for the rest of the season.
The road to recovery was long for ‘King Louis’ and even with the impact of the pandemic and a delay in the football season Moult would never play for Preston again. Moult made the bench for a couple of games at the end of last season, but his Preston contract would not be renewed.
Moult secured a two-year deal with Burton Albion on League One under the management of legendary striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.
However in pre-season disaster was to strike for Louis again as he suffered an ankle injury that would see him sit out for another five months.
It was the last thing needed as he looked to get his career back on track and must have been incredibly hard to deal with from a mental point of view as well.
A full season in League One and you’d think Moult would have the ability to get 15 goals or more in a decent team. Burton sit comfortably in mid table and Moult has made two starts and four appearances from the bench for The Brewers.
On Saturday he managed to score his first goal for the club and his first in football since August 2019. A huge moment for the former Stoke City striker and one that galvanised a comeback victory for his side.
He levelled things up against Fleetwood Town before Oumar Niasse grabbed a dramatic winner as the game finished 3-2. Moult was clearly delighted at the end of the game and hopefully he can go on to net a few more goals before the end of the season.