Oxford United manager Karl Robinson has given his thoughts ahead of the summer transfer window. The U’s boss insists the club must keep hold of their best players ahead of next season.
While recent sales of Gavin Whyte, Shandon Baptiste and Tariqe Fosu have put the U’s in the black, Robinson is fearful that major departures could derail any promotion hopes going forward.
The club have seen Jack Stevens and Cameron Brannagan both linked with moves away, while Robinson also confirmed the club are looking to bring Marcus McGuane back to the club on a permanent basis.
Speaking to the Oxford Mail, he said: “We’re getting a lot of work done on and off the pitch at the moment, but people only ever see the results that are good, bad or indifferent.
“Work’s going on behind the scenes for next season, but the likes of Jack, Cameron and Rob Atkinson have to stay here next year.
“If you look at the top teams, there’s no turnover of players, they’ve only got better.
“That’s a big learning curve for us for next season.
“Unless the transfer fee becomes something that we have no control over, we’ve got to be really brave in keeping all of these players moving forward.”
Stevens, Brannagan and Atkinson are all under long-term contracts at Grenoble Road, meaning a significant fee will be needed to prize either of those away from the club.
As for McGuane, the club would need to part cash for the Nottingham Forest man. The 22-year-old hasn’t played since picking up a thigh injury in a win over Bristol Rovers at the end of January, but has impressed from his 21 appearances this season.
Robinson said: “Everyone knows how much I want him back here. He wants to be back here as well.
“We’re working extremely hard and hopefully we can have some news on him. He’s certainly a player that we know the owners want.
“We know Notts Forest are happy with it and we’re happy with what we think we can get out of the deal.
“Hopefully in the next seven days, we can have some news.”
Speaking about his side’s loss of form, he added: “I put a big responsibility down to when we lost Marcus, our performances have been a lot more inconsistent.
“Moving forward, we’ve got to get the right players in and don’t lose players.”
However, the U’s have several key players out of contract in the summer. This is another area that will need addressing in the coming weeks.
