Oxford United began the month, and the new year, with a frustrating draw against Cheltenham Town. The U’s played some of their best football of the season just a few days before in a win over AFC Wimbledon but had to battle for a point against the Robins. Cheltenham took the lead just after the start of the second half but the U’s rescued the point late on through Mark Sykes.
It wouldn’t be the start of January without transfer rumours and that is what happened following the draw against the Robins. The U’s were linked with a move for Scotland international, Stuart Findlay. The centre-back had previously been linked with a move to Oxford during his time at Kilmarnock.
Matty Taylor was then shortlisted for December’s Player of the Month after scoring four goals in five games. However, Rotherham midfielder Dan Barlaser claimed the award ahead of the 31-year-old, Charlton shot-stopper Craig MacGillivray and Alex Pritchard of Sunderland.
Reports in Wales claimed Oxford were set to keep hold of winger Gavin Whyte until the summer. The 25-year-old rejoined the U’s in the summer on loan from Cardiff City but could have been recalled during the January transfer window. However, the winger stayed with the U’s over concerns about a lack of game time in the Welsh capital.
News that dominated January, midfielder Cameron Brannagan was subject to an offer from Blackpool early on in the transfer window but the club rejected the approach. Reports suggested the bid was between £300,000-£500,000. The Seasiders would be back for more, however.
Oxford then suffered a first away defeat in three months after a poor display at strugglers Lincoln. Anthony Scully put the Imps ahead just before the break while Brannagan was replaced after picking up an injury in the build-up to the goal. Lincoln added a second after the restart before Herbie Kane was dismissed for a straight red card for a 50/50 challenge, meaning he would miss the next three games.
The biggest news of the month came in the opening week when a leaked letter revealed the preferred site for a new stadium. Stratfield Brake, just north of the city, was identified and the club confirmed the plans to build an 18,000 capacity stadium shortly after. The club would own the land for 250 years and add international class sporting and community facilities to Oxfordshire.
Blackpool then continued in their pursuit of Brannagan and even offered cash and on-loan defender Jordan Thorniley as part of a new bid. The defender is out of contract at Bloomfield Road in the summer but the Seasiders have an option to extend his stay by 12 months. The 25-year-old has had a successful loan spell with Oxford.
With the future of Brannagan in doubt, Oxford were then linked with a move for Coventry midfielder, Jordan Shipley. The 24-year-old is yet to make a Championship appearance for the Sky Blues this season but has turned out over 150 times for the club, having come through the academy.
Another potential departure emerged when Huddersfield Town reportedly showed interest in Mark Sykes. The midfielder, who is out of contract in the summer, could have become the second player from Oxford that the Terriers snapped up after Josh Ruffels made the move last summer.
Oxford’s winless 2022 continued with a 2-0 loss at promotion rivals Wycombe. The U’s missed several first-half chances before the Chairboys opened the scoring on 33 minutes. The second half was a similar story as the hosts doubled their advantage. The result saw Oxford drop out of the playoff places to seventh.
The U’s then found themselves linked with former Tottenham and England striker, Jermain Defoe. The 39-year-old held talks with the club despite attracting interest from two of his former clubs in Charlton and Sunderland, along with Ipswich. He would go on to join the Black Cats on deadline day.
Oxford were then dealt a defensive blow when it was reported that Blackpool were set to recall Jordan Thorniley. The 25-year-old joined the U’s on loan in the summer but with Oxford rejecting multiple bids from the Seasiders for Brannagan, the Championship club looked to retaliate in another way.
Karl Robinson’s side picked up their first win of 2022 with a 3-2 victory over Sheffield Wednesday. Matty Taylor levelled twice in the game after the U’s fell behind in both halves but Sam Winnall netted a late winner against his former club. The result moved the U’s back into the playoff places.
Although Winnall netted the winner against Wednesday, the striker remains out of favour at Grenoble Road. As a result, Oxford reportedly turned their attention to Morecambe striker Cole Stockton. The 27-year-old has netted 20 goals already this season and has just 18 months remaining on his current deal.
Following reports that they would, Blackpool then decided to recall defender Thorniley from his loan spell after Oxford’s win over Wednesday. He made 25 appearances for the U’s but will spend the rest of the campaign at Bloomfield Road.
The U’s continued in their hunt for a striker with reports linking them with Dundee United striker, Louis Appere. The 22-year-old has scored eight times in 79 appearances for the Terrors since making his debut in 2017.
Another youngster was then linked with a move to Oxford with the U’s interested in signing Newcastle midfielder Matty Longstaff. The 21-year-old, who has made 20 senior appearances for the Magpies, recently returned from a disappointing loan spell at Aberdeen but the Premier League club are looking for him to secure regular game time. However, that was as close as it got with the midfielder dropping down to League Two and signing for Mansfield Town on deadline day.
The U’s then lost another player as winger Joel Cooper joined Port Vale on loan for the rest of the season. The 25-year-old has managed just 11 Oxford appearances since his arrival from Linfield in 2020 so both the club and the player will be hopeful of some regular game time.
The departures continued when striker Dan Agyei left the club to join Crewe Alexandra for an undisclosed fee. The forward, who joined the U’s from Burnley in 2019, scored 11 times in 93 appearances but found consistency difficult to come by.
Marcus Browne was the next to be linked with a move to the club, although the name had been mooted all throughout the transfer window. The two-time Oxford loanee was out of favour at Middlesbrough and, after a move to Charlton collapsed, a return to Grenoble Road looked likely for the 24-year-old.
But Browne wasn’t the only winger Oxford had eyes on, with Crystal Palace youngster Jesurun Rak-Sakyi also being of interest. The 19-year-old was targeted by four other Football League clubs after scoring 11 times from 16 Premier League 2 matches.
Oxford headed to Gillingham for the final game of the month still without any new additions but having seen three faces leave. Despite that, the U’s romped to a 7-2 victory in Kent – the most goals the club have ever scored in a Football League away match. Strikes from Billy Bodin, Taylor, Anthony Forde and four (yes four) Brannagan penalties rounded off the month on the pitch.
Following their rout against Gillingham, Oxford then emerged as favourites to sign Dungannon Swifts midfielder Oisin Smyth. The 21-year-old had scored once and added five assists from 21 NIFL Premiership games this season.
Another former player was then linked with a return with Luton striker Danny Hylton a possible target for the U’s. The 32-year-old enjoyed two seasons at Grenoble Road before joining Luton Town, although he is out of contract in the summer.
Deadline day arrived and, as expected, it all went off! Firstly, Blackpool came back with a third offer of the window for Brannagan, believed to be £800,000 but the U’s quickly rejected the approach. However, the Championship club didn’t stop there and later submitted a seven-figure bid, believed to be £1 million which the club rejected once again.
Reports then suggested that Oxford and MK Dons were showing interest in Brighton defender Haydon Roberts, but neither made a move for the 19-year-old.
However, when Oxford did make their move for a player it was worth the wait. Marcus Browne completed a permanent move to Grenoble Road from Middlesbrough. The 24-year-old has struggled for game time due to injury but is a welcome addition to Karl Robinson’s squad.
With one down, the U’s added another shortly after and once again, it was a player from across the Irish Sea. Midfielder Oisin Smyth, signed from NFL Premiership side Dungannon Swifts, became the fifth player since 2018 that Oxford have signed from across the way.
Reports then emerged that Oxford were ‘set to sign’ Cardiff defender Ciaron Brown. Despite the news coming out in late afternoon, it was confirmed just before the deadline that the U’s had signed the 24-year-old on loan. He is a welcome addition, providing cover for the departed Thorniley.
With three new faces, it seemed like Oxford fans could relax, but when Wigan came in with a late offer for Mark Sykes, supporters got nervous. However, like with Brannagan, the club quickly rejected any advances for the midfielder, despite being out of contract in the summer.
