For me there is no way Dowell could stand in for Gomes. Gomes is a far more combative player than Dowell who is by contrast almost anonymous when we do not have possession. You can’t really afford a lightweight player in that position.
When he was at Forest they were struggling at the wrong end of the table and the fans after initially being impressed by his undoubtedly sublime skills also commented on his pronounced tendency to also go missing in games. It was no real surprise that Karanke sacrificed him from that central position to stiffen them defensively nor that he tried to retain him as an offensive player albeit in the less exposed winger role.
In a sense he is something of a neutral player ,what you gain in attacking football you lose defensively and that is not good enough to claim a regular place in a Premier League squad.
I sincerely hope he proves me wrong in the years to come but ,currently, I don’t think he has any future in the top league.