Oxford United star in Wales breakthrough after international call-up

Andrews is one of five Oxford players who have been selected for international duty after receiving a call-up to the Wales Under-21 setup, with teammate Mark Harris chosen to feature for the senior side during the international break.

Ciaron Brown, Brodie Spencer and Jamie McDonnell have all been called up for Northern Ireland, however, McDonnell did pick up an injury last time out against Cambridge United which will likely see him miss out.

Wales international Andrews has previously played three times for the senior team, making his debut in September of last year as his country were defeated 1-0 by Canada in a friendly.

The Wales first team face reigning Nations League champions Portugal before games against Denmark and Norway.

New Oxford United loan signing Kai Andrews (Image: James Holyoak/PA Wire)

The 20-year-old, who is eligible for Wales through his maternal grandmother, is keen to get back into the fold after missing out on this occasion.

“There are a lot of games coming up, there’s a lot of opportunity with the international team, and I think that’s just my next step, to hopefully try and break in there and get as many minutes as I can there,” the Coventry City loanee said.

Andrews arrived in OX4 on loan from Premier League side Coventry last month and already had links to key U’s personnel.

After playing for the Welsh youth sides, the Birmingham-born midfielder was already familiar with new Yellows head coach Aaron Ramsey who had previously worked with the nation’s youth setup.

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Furthermore, striker Mark Harris, who is a consistent feature in the Wales squad, had played alongside during his previous senior camp call-ups.

“Mark Harris has been in the set-up with me since I joined, so it was good to come here and see a familiar face as well,” the on-loan U’s man continued.

“We’ve kind of already got that link, the Welsh link, so that was nice.”

The already-established Welsh connection between Andrews and Ramsey played an important role in bringing the youngster to the club on a free loan move.

“We had the conversation quite early into pre-season, to be fair, once the gaffer made the move.”

Oxford United midfielder Kai Andrews on loan from Coventry City (Image: Oxford United)

“And obviously there were all the issues with embargo and stuff like that, so it was just a case of, when can I get in through the door?

“So he’s given me a lot of confidence coming in, and obviously since I’ve been in, it’s really helped me to settle in as well.”

Andrews has played four times for Oxford since joining, securing two assists on his first start for the club in a 4-0 away win against Leicester City.

He had made his debut three days earlier with a 28-minute substitute appearance at Huddersfield Town where Ramsey’s side were defeated 3-1.