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Summer Signing Set for Loan Move

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Oxford United midfielder Joel Cooper looks set to leave the club on loan. The 24-year-old only joined the club in the summer but has been struggling with ongoing personal issues.

Now, U’s boss Karl Robinson is looking for him to play the remainder of the season back in Northern Ireland, which is where the winger has been for the past few weeks.

Speaking to the Oxford Mail, Robinson said: “Joel’s got two issues back home at the moment and finding it very difficult to be over here.

“He’s not in a good place with that. He spoke to me on the phone and wants to go back to Ireland until the summer.

“The situations that have arisen won’t be an overnight thing that we’ll be able to click our fingers and make better.

“He will go on loan back there until the summer, while the situation hopefully starts to be solved.

“Hopefully he’ll be in a better place for it when he comes back.”

Cooper was Robinson’s first summer signing and penned a three year deal with the club. Since, he has managed just six appearances for the U’s with four coming in the league but has managed just 87 minutes in the division.

The winger missed several games following an international call up, in which he failed to represent Northern Ireland in their three games.

Unlike before, his current absence is not football related. Robinson added: “These are all things that have happened since he signed and were completely out of our control.

“He knows our thoughts are with him. He’s a tremendous young man, very brave in the fact he’s taken the risk coming over here and not having his family here.

“His welfare is the most important thing. I sometimes sound like the evil dragon that’s constantly shouting fire and anger at people but there’s also a side of humility and respect for all the people that play for our football club.

“This isn’t football, it’s other things that are going on.”

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