AFC Wimbledon Sign Goalkeeper Joe Bursik on Loan

AFC Wimbledon have brought goalkeeper Joe Bursik back to his boyhood club, signing the Portsmouth stopper on loan for the rest of the season.

The move marks a full-circle return for the 26-year-old, who first walked through the doors at Plough Lane as an eight-year-old academy hopeful before leaving for Stoke City at 16. Now he comes back with Championship experience and a career shaped by a series of demanding loans.

Bursik’s breakthrough spell came at Stoke, where he produced seven clean sheets in 16 Championship appearances during the 2020-21 campaign. That run underlined his potential and pushed him into senior loan stints with Telford, Accrington Stanley, Doncaster Rovers and Peterborough United, each stop adding another layer to his development.

He joined Portsmouth in September 2025 and has made 10 league appearances for Pompey, while also starting their FA Cup third-round tie against Arsenal at Fratton Park, a 4-1 defeat that still offered a high-profile stage.

Now he returns to Wimbledon with a different status: no longer the academy prospect, but the seasoned professional expected to anchor a promotion push and steady the back line in the months ahead.