Oxford united FC
Overhaul not needed for Matt Bloomfield’s Oxford United
Oxford were defeated 2-0 on the final day of the season at Millwall and The U’s head coach was questioned as to the state of the squad heading into the summer.
“There’s going to be work that needs to be done to make sure that we come back in August and we’re ready to go,” Bloomfield told BBC Radio Oxford.
“I don’t think there’s an overhaul needed [or] that is necessary, but there are certainly some things that we need to improve on.
“We do have the nucleus of a really good squad for League One. We’ve had a squad that have been here for a few years. We’ve also got some really good young players who the football club have invested in that we’re really pleased to have.”
And he is right.
Oxford’s core of (to our knowledge) contracted players is strong.
Jamie Cumming, a Championship-capable goalkeeper, as number one. Experience and quality in defence with the likes of Ciaron Brown, Michal Helik, Sam Long, Jack Currie, and Brodie Spencer.
There is youth and excitement in the midfield and wide areas in Stan Mills, Aidomo Emakhu, and Jamie McDonnell – amongst others – and, of course, skipper Cameron Brannagan is there to hold down the fort.
Up top, there is Mark Harris, who scored 15 goals in his last League One campaign, and Nik Prelec who has shown signs in limited minutes and who will be keen to prove himself after signing for United permanently.
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An ‘overhaul’ suggests that huge swathes of players will be turned over, but that simply is not necessary this summer.
Some players will attract interest – most likely this season’s standouts like Stan Mills, Brian De Keersmaecker and Jack Currie – which The U’s will have to make decisions on regarding price tags and importance.
There is also room for improvement in areas. The striking position is a slight unknown, for example, with the jury still out on Prelec and Harris not enjoying the most fruitful campaign last time out.
Ole Romeny also remains a slight mystery despite being at the club for near 18 months.
Moving players on is where the task lies.
Out-of-favour names like Greg Leigh and Siriki Dembele are two that The Yellows must make decisions on regarding their futures with both still under contract.
It is unlikely teams will come in with big offers considering their lack of form and minutes so there is a question of whether to keep them and play them, or some sort of agreement regarding their contracts.
Other forgotten men like Louie Sibley, Will Goodwin, and Peter Kioso can be included in that realm.
Some contracts have question marks surrounding them meaning the upcoming retained list from the club will be intriguing.
But is an overhaul necessary? As Bloomfield said, ‘I don’t think so’.
The U’s have been relegated from the Championship after a two-year stay, finishing 22nd in the league and four points from safety.
Oxford join Leicester City and Sheffield Wednesday in stepping down to the third tier.
On Monday, The Yellows confirmed their list of retained players ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.
10 players have been released by the club following the expiry of their contracts.
Przemysław Płacheta, Myles Peart-Harris, Hidde ter Avest, Owen Dale, Will Goodwin, Joshua Johnson, Jacob Knightbridge, Steph Negru, Tom Bradshaw and Stuart Findlay will all depart OX4.
Head of football operations, Ed Waldron, told the club website: “I would like to place on record my thanks to each of the players departing the club for their contribution and professionalism during their time at Oxford United.
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“The recruitment process for the upcoming season has been underway for several months, and we will continue to look at ways to strengthen and improve the squad as we look to respond next season and push for promotion back to the Championship.”
Of the 10 released names, Dutch right back ter Avest is the only real surprise with the defender departing after two years at the club.
The 28-year-old played 36 times for The Yellows and scored one goal.
Polish winger Placheta is the most high-profile departure having played 60 matches for Oxford, scoring six goals and managing four assists.
The former Birmingham City and Norwich City man has been rumoured to be in talks with Major League Soccer outfit Austin FC in the United States.
Peart-Harris arrived in January from Premier League side Brentford on a contract until the end of the season and leaves having played 20 times, scoring on three occasions and assisting once.
Former Portsmouth and Blackpool winger Dale contributed to The U’s League One play-off winning 2023/24 campaign and leaves after spending the season on loan at Plymouth Argyle.
Goodwin, Johnson, Knightbridge, and Negru are all players on the younger side who have recently been out on loan at lower league clubs having struggled to make strong enough impressions in OX4.
Experienced striker Bradshaw spent the second half of the season at Barnsley and leaves after 18 months at Oxford.
30-year-old defender Findlay departs after four years but having spent three of those on loan in Scotland.
The summer transfer window is just around the corner and, with the regular Championship season over, moves are already starting to formulate.
The U’s have been relegated to League One after two seasons in the second tier and will have business to do this summer if they are to bounce back next term.
Midfielder De Keersmaecker is one player who is expected to garner interest from elsewhere after an impressive first half of the season after arriving in OX4 last summer.
The Belgian arrived from Dutch outfit Heracles Almelo and adjusted well to English football, scoring once and assisting five times in 26 Championship appearances.
After suffering a shoulder injury in January, De Keersmaecker has been out of action ever since after choosing to have an operation which meant his season would be ended prematurely.
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According to reporter Alan Nixon, the 26-year-old has already generated interest from the Championship having made an impression on John Eustace’s Derby.
The Rams are keen to recruit the midfielder, who can play as a number six, eight, or ten, on a ‘bargain deal’.
Derby loanee David Ozoh has returned to parent club Crystal Palace following The Rams’ failure to make the play-off places on the last day of the season, and the club are looking to find a ‘similar replacement’.
Matt Bloomfield’s U’s had their status in League One confirmed for next season before their penultimate game of the season, a 4-1 win over Sheffield Wednesday.
At times this season, it had looked like The Yellows were completely doomed, but a late run of just one defeat in eight games meant hope had started to gather once more.
Two 1-0 defeats to Derby County and Wrexham were dagger blows to said hopes and ultimately, along with results elsewhere, condemned Oxford to a return to third-tier football next year.
So, what were the defining reasons for United’s demotion?
Indonesia tour
There is no getting away from the impact that The U’s tour of Indonesia in pre-season had on the campaign.
Former head coach Gary Rowett said at the time that the tour meant United were playing games too soon, leading to injuries and leaving the team behind schedule with only three weeks left of pre-season upon their return.
Oxford went on to lose their opening Championship fixture 1-0 at home to Portsmouth and were winless in their first five games of the season.
Summer recruitment
Oxford brought in seven new faces last summer – two permanently and five on loan – which were varied in success.
The two permanent transfers, Brodie Spencer and Brian De Keersmaecker, can both be considered successes, despite the latter missing the final three months of the season after surgery.
Only one loan player can be judged a true success, though, in top scorer and double end of season award-winning Will Lankshear.
Nik Prelec has been signed permanently and shown small signs despite scoring only one goal and failing to lock down a starting berth whilst suffering a few injuries.
Luke Harris and Filip Krastev were below the level needed and both returned to their parent clubs in January.
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Ultimately, Oxford did not have enough quality from their summer additions and that, coupled with the impact of Indonesia, led to a poor first half of the campaign under Rowett.
Delaying the inevitable
Hindsight is a wonderful but painful thing.
The league table since Bloomfield’s appointment prior to match week 27 sees The U’s comfortably in 13th place with six win, seven draws, and seven defeats.
Under Rowett was when United were in relegation form, 23rd and eight points from safety upon his dismissal.
Had Oxford moved earlier then survival could very well have been achieved, and comfortably at that.
The former boss was sacked after a 1-0 defeat to Charlton Athletic which concluded a streak of only one win in 10 games.
That game was the first time chants criticising Rowett could be heard which is likely a factor in the club dismissing him three days later.
The club’s hand could, and should, have been forced at least a game earlier following a 2-1 defeat to Preston North End.
A poor showing away at Norwich City in November where Krastev stole a late 1-1 draw could have been an earlier justified point to sack Rowett, as could the 2-0 away defeat at Swansea City in early December.
Points go begging
Now, yes, obviously the reason United were relegated was because they failed to pick up enough points.
It is the manner of which some points were dropped that really make the difference, though, especially when looking at some of the later matches in the season.
The Easter weekend was agonising, and even more so in hindsight.
Bloomfield’s men were the better side against play-off achieving Hull City.
An early setback saw The U’s trail 1-0 after four minutes, but they hit back with a Cameron Brannagan penalty less than 10 minutes later.
The Yellows then went on to have good chances to win it, and arguably should have, Michal Helik and Mark Harris both seeing efforts missed from close range.
Three days later, the team failed to hold on to a lead against 10-man Portsmouth, conceding in the 87th-minute equaliser not long after Lankshear had seemingly scored the winner.
Six possible points became only two.
Only a few weeks earlier, The U’s had dropped another two points against relegation rivals Charlton who went on to finish five points above Oxford in 18th.
Ciaron Brown tugged the shirt of Lloyd Jones to concede a penalty in stoppage time which Charlie Kelman then tucked away.
These moments might not seem like much, but those examples have seen a crucial six points in total go begging.
Moments like these at crucial points of the season are ultimately what separate a Championship side from one destined for League One.
Having highlighted these faults, there is cause for optimism looking forward.
In Bloomfield, there is a manager at the helm who has succeeded in League One before, at Wycombe Wanderers before his move to Luton Town.
There is a strong core of contracted players with a mix of youth and experience whilst the third tier is void of a clear dominant one or two teams such as Birmingham City or Wrexham in recent years.
This season has frustrated in many ways but as things stand – and, yes, there is clear work to be done – Oxford look well-poised to bounce back.
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