U’s Without Trio for Argyle Visit

Oxford United have been dealt a double injury blow ahead of Saturday’s visit of Plymouth Argyle.

Brandon Barker, who has also missed the previous two games, remains sidelined with a hamstring injury while Cameron Brannagan has also been ruled out.

The midfielder suffered a dead leg late on in Tuesday’s defeat at AFC Wimbledon and U’s boss Karl Robinson revealed they are still awaiting a timescale.

Robinson is also without James Henry after his dismissal at Plough Lane, leaving the U’s short of three key players in midfield.

Speaking about Barker, Robinson said: “We made a decision today that he won’t be fit.

“It’s a big loss to us, as well as Cameron getting injured and now James Henry.

“We lost with tremendous passion and desire with a really good performance (at Wimbledon), but on top of that losing them is a bigger disappointment than the result.”

Knowing that a top six finish appears less likely after Tuesday, Robinson added: “We’ve still got ourselves in a wonderful position and it’s an incredibly important fixture.

“It’s the third game in this block and we still have an achievable target, so it’s important that we have as many players fit and available as possible.”