Oxford united FC
Oxford United coach wants ‘quality’ Will Lankshear replacement
The U’s lost some key players after being relegated from the Championship, with the likes of Tottenham Hotspur striker Lankshear and Brentford midfielder Yunus Konak returning to their parent clubs.
Eastwood says the club must replace these players with quality whilst keeping their ‘core’.
The 36-year-old goalkeeper recently signed a new contract in OX4 as a coach, helping the next generation of shot-stopper whilst still training with the first team and to support the goalkeeping department.
“I’m happy to be here still,” Eastwood told The Dub, BBC Radio Oxford.
“Hopefully I can be here for a long time to give back my knowledge I’ve got over the years with this club. In League One, things happen, there are a lot of games in different competitions and I’m sure that if I’m called upon, I could come in and do a job when needed.
🧤 Simon Eastwood Signs New Coaching Contract.
Easty will officially help to coach the next generation of Oxford United goalkeepers and will continue to train with the Men’s Team to support the First Team goalkeepers. ⤵️
— Oxford United (@OUFCOfficial) May 27, 2026
“Will Lankshear, who probably won’t be coming back, will be a massive loss. Players like that, for me, we need to replace with good quality to get us some goals to get us straight back up.”
The veteran keeper is close with Yellows captain Cameron Brannagan, with the duo two of the longest-serving players at the club.
“I speak to Cam on a daily basis. He obviously loves the club as well, he’s been here a long time.
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“He’s absolutely devastated to go down and he wants to be a Championship player, wants to play in the Championship, wants to do it with Oxford. As a team, we just need to bounce back as quickly as we can. Hopefully we can keep our core and our best players.”
Eastwood has been at the club for 10 years now after joining in 2016, his second spell with the club.
His first spell was an unsuccessful year in 2010/11 where he was second fiddle to Ryan Clarke and failed to make an appearance before being released.
“I’m very realistic and open about my career.
“I’m not a Championship keeper. Five or 10 years ago, maybe I could’ve given it a good shot.
“Could I come in and do a job for a game or so? I think I could. But to be consistently playing, week-in, week-out, I probably don’t think I’m there anymore in the Championship.
“League One, I think, is a little bit different in the sense of I’m still good enough to…I’ve obviously played a lot of games in League One since I’ve been at Oxford and I know the standard.
“We’ve got two really good goalkeepers in Jamie [Cumming] and Matt [Ingram] at the moment, so I was never going into training every day or knocking on the manager’s door thinking I should be playing.”
The U’s begin the season with a Carabao Cup journey to Leyton Orient on Saturday which will also mark former Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey’s first competitive game in charge.
Oxford secured a perfect record in pre-season with four wins from four including a 2-0 win over Premier League club Ipswich Town.
Hit with a temporary transfer embargo in July, the U’s brought in one new player before the ban in former Hearts defender Frankie Kent.
They have seen four players depart in Matt Ingram, Nik Prelec and Will Vaulks permanently, as well as Ole Romeny on loan.
There have been a few changes to player squad numbers on the eve of the new season.
Notably, South Korean attacker Jeon Jin-woo has taken the no.7 from departed winger Przemyslaw Placheta who left earlier this summer after his contract expired with the Yellows.
New signing Kent will wear the no.5 despite picking up an anterior cruciate ligament injury which rules him out of action for a number of months.
Academy graduate Tyler Goodrham has changed his number from no.19 to no.11 which was held by Romeny last term.
New numbers and squad list confirmed ✅
Looks like young Monty Marriott will be third choice goalkeeper – all other youngsters that featured in pre-season are included and handed squad numbers 🔢 #oufc 🟡 https://t.co/ZtWECiNrEp
— malachi (@MalachiObrey) August 7, 2026
January signing Jamie McDonnell will wear the no.18 shirt which was worn by Louie Sibley last year; the latter will now wear no.32.
21-year-old striker Gatlin O’Donkor, who scored in three out of four pre-season fixtures, will take over the no.19 shirt formerly worn by Goodrham.
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Youngsters James Golding (no.25), Leo Snowden (no.27), Aidan Elliott-Wheeler (no.37), Monty Marriott (no.41) and Harrison Bradney (no.44) are all included on the list.
Marriott will seemingly be the new third-choice shot-stopper, with veteran Simon Eastwood (no.13) as the second choice.
The three other young academy products all featured in the pre-season victories and have a huge opportunity at securing regular first-team spots amid the current transfer embargo.
🔢 With the first game of the competitive season just hours away, we can confirm the squad list for the 2026/27 season.
— Oxford United (@OUFCOfficial) August 7, 2026
Marselino Ferdinan is one who is notably absent.
There has been no information on his contract status as of yet, with the Indonesian not named in the U’s post.
The 21-year-old spent time on loan at Slovakian club AS Trencin last season but suffered an injury which curtailed his year.
The confirmed numbers come three days after United released their new away kit showcasing Oxford’s performing arts scene.
Supporters can now choose which player and number to select when purchasing the new home and away shirts.
Oxford begin the new campaign with a trip to Leyton Orient in the Carabao Cup on Saturday afternoon, marking the start of a new era under the leadership of former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey.
The U’s have had a summer of mixed fortunes, winning all four of their pre-season fixtures after being hit with a temporary transfer embargo for failing to comply with the EFL’s Squad Cost Management Protocol (SCMP) regulations.
With the Yellows unable to bring in new faces or replace departing names, young players and those formerly on the fringes of the squad have been given a huge opportunity to secure a first-team place.
As one of the senior figures at the club, Brannagan has opened up on his influence on those players.
“I’ve had close conversations with them because it’s a great opportunity for the younger ones to come through,” the 30-year-old declared.
“The stage is theirs, to be honest. I’m sure that Gaff has come in and had conversations with them and said that there will be opportunity for you.
“If it was me as a young kid now, I’d be looking at that going, this is my chance.
“They’re all great kids; they work very hard and they do deserve the opportunity.
“I wish them all the best and hopefully they will grab that opportunity by the scruff of the neck and do really well.”
One of those young players is fellow midfielder Harrison Bradney, a youngster who has progressed through the club’s academy since joining at the age of seven and impressed in his performances in pre-season.
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“I try to help them all, to be honest, in their own ways,” Brannagan continued.
“It’s never easy as a young kid, especially stepping into the first-team environment but, yeah, Bradley is great.
“I see it in training; he’s got great quality and he’s got potential to hopefully have a great career.
“Bradney knows if he obviously ever needs anything, we’re always here to help him.
“I think he’s been great pre-season and trained really well; [it is a] massive season for him.”
Three players have left the club – Ole Romeny, Nik Prelec and Will Vaulks – since the embargo hit but the U’s players have had to remain focused on the season ahead amidst the off-field drama.
“There’s always conversation in the dressing room, but obviously that’s for the dressing room.
“Everybody here is focused to play for Oxford United and that’s the main focus. Our main focus is tomorrow.
“I know it’s a cup game, but we want to go there and hopefully get the result.
“It’s an important game and we want to get through to the next round.”
The U’s kick off their season with a trip to League One rivals Orient in the cup, a first competitive fixture for new head coach Ramsey after a pre-season with four wins out of four.
The former Arsenal midfielder was appointed as Matt Bloomfield’s successor in June, with the club being hit with a temporary transfer embargo shortly after.
Three players have left the club since the ban – Ole Romeny, Nik Prelec and Will Vaulks – with rumours also recently surfacing regarding winger and last season’s player of the year Mills.
The 22-year-old scored twice in three games during pre-season including a second goal against Premier League side Ipswich Town.
“Stan has missed a couple of days of training, so he’ll be seeing how he gets through the next today and seeing what he can do,” Ramsey confirmed.
“But same with Brian [De Keersmaecker] as well, just seeing how today looks and seeing if they come through OK to be available for tomorrow.
“The rest of the squad are all trained well this week and they’re raring to go as well.”
Belgian midfielder De Keersmaecker did not feature during pre-season.
With the Yellows currently unable to replace any departing players, the club has a fight to keep the squad together during the last month of the transfer window.
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“They are always are tricky, aren’t they?” Ramsey answered when questioned whether it would be a difficult rest of the window.
“With things going on in the background and stuff like that, but that’s all part and parcel of the job and me as a manager to be able to manage them situations.
“But for me, the players, they’ve been fully committed and I can’t speak highly enough of them.
“I’m really excited now for them to show what they can do this season.”
The 35-year-old begins his first season as a head coach with a trip to East London in the cup after retiring from professional football in April.
“It’s different, obviously being on the side line, but I can’t stress enough that I am really excited for this.
“I’m ready for this opportunity and I hope that’s evident to see now.
“The team and the squad have been fantastic throughout pre-season and now it’s just about adding layers to that and for that to come to life now in these games.
“It’s a chance to win a trophy at the end of the day, so for us it’s an important competition and we want to be testing ourselves against the teams and seeing how far we can progress.”
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