Oxford United

"You've got a great starting XI by recent standards for Oxford United but can these players who have had a truncated pre-season go 90 minutes and into stoppage time?"

The Dub team discuss how Oxford's pre-season has shaped up, how injuries may affect the squad and what's going on with the new stadium.

Listen to the full episode of The Dub and more on BBC Sounds.

Image source, Rex Features

Oxford United's pre-season tour of Indonesia meant they were playing games too soon, according to boss Gary Rowett.

The U's played three games in Indonesia before heading back to England where they have featured in a further three first-team warm-ups this month.

That has led to a number of injuries which are giving concern to Rowett ahead of their opening Championship match at home to Portsmouth on 9 August.

"Ciaron Brown will be (out) a little longer as he's had a minor setback and Will Vaulks might be a week but it's not much good when the season is around the corner," Rowett told BBC Radio Oxford after a 1-1 draw with Spanish side CD Leganes on Tuesday.

Oxford have so far signed defender Brodie Spencer and midfielder Brian De Keersmaecker this summer.

"Michal Helik and Shemmy (Przemyslaw Placheta) were unavailable for the game and Luke Harris will be out for a while with a swollen ankle and there's some damage in there.

"Having to play players because you've lost players in Indonesia because we're playing games too soon has a knock-on effect," added Rowett.

Coventry City, Derby County and Oxford United are interested in 32-year-old German defender Patrick Bauer, formerly of Preston North End. (SportsBoom, external)

Oxford, meanwhile, are set to sign Wales Under-21 midfielder Luke Harris, 20, on a season-long loan from Fulham. (Jack Kelly, external)

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Tuesday's gossip column here.

Jerome Sale
BBC Radio Oxford's Oxford United commentator

Image source, BBC Indonesia

Both of Oxford's matches in Bandung were interrupted – the first by floodlight failure and the second by monsoon rain of epic proportions.

The weather in the final against Thai side Port FC undoubtedly contributed to the outcome – Port's winner came during the deluge.

Had it been Elliott Moore lifting the trophy, not his beaming counterpart, the initial assessment of the trip would, I am sure, be largely positive. Even when results don't really matter, they kind of do.

United have done a lot right out here, even making kids in an orphanage smile with a mass kick-about. Those who think footballers are all cynical should have seen this group of players there. They won't forget those children and I applaud their private actions after the visit.

If you drew up a list of EFL football managers past and present that you might expect to see being paraded on an imitation lion carried by four men as part of a local custom…Gary Rowett would be a long way down it.

He was respectful and didn't refuse when invited to climb aboard at a news conference. He styled it out and by doing so he has gone up in most people's expectations.

The team will have got over the defeat by Port almost before they had dried out. More minutes in the legs, some game-time for youth team products. Mark Harris will be pleased with his golden boot for being tournament top scorer.

Oxford's rise to the Championship – and staying there - has been in no small part because of the funding from Erick Thohir and others in South East Asia. The latest growing pains are maybe being felt by the team and coaching staff more than the supporters.

A 7,000-mile trip in pre-season is probably not the absolutely ideal preparation for the new season, but there is a reason big clubs make these trips, even though they're often derided.

This was a tour of discovery for those who travelled at relatively short notice to support the team, but it was too for Oxford United itself - a tentative exploration of a potentially massive market, where no particular European team appears to have a stranglehold. But the gap between the richest and poorest is a chasm, and monetarising Oxford's new found popularity will be a challenge in Indonesia. They missed out on £250,000 of prize money when they lost the final, too.

Will the injuries picked up prove debilitating as the Championship season opens? Has United's reputation been significantly enhanced? Will they be able to tap into this emerging economy? We only know the true value – or cost - of the trip further down the line.

United invested a lot in this trip – not financially, the first class travel and accommodation was all laid on - but in terms of energy and emotion. I am sure there will be a fierce internal debate about whether it should 'one and done' for such a tour, or whether it would be folly not to try and learn from - and build on - what has been achieved here this time…. and, as they say in football, 'go again'.

You can find part one of Jerome Sale's tour recap below.

Jerome Sale
BBC Radio Oxford's Oxford United commentator

Image source, BBC Indonesia

I used the word "surreal" a lot while watching Oxford United in Indonesia.

The club's quest to become an established Championship club needs success on the field, but that does not just happen without progress off the field too.

There cannot be anyone connected with the club that doesn't understand that the biggest fixture of the summer will be played out in the Cherwell District Council committee meeting at the end of the month, when they will get planning permission - or not – for a new stadium.

That would help them generate significantly more revenue than at the Kassam – but still more will be needed for United to thrive.

It may surprise you to learn that the biggest attendance Oxford will play before in 2025 will almost certainly be the 40,000+ plus who watched the U's opening match in the Piala Presiden – the President's Cup – in Jakarta's national stadium last week.

The enthusiasm for Gary's Rowett's side, even when up against an Indonesia All Stars team was very evident. United having Indonesian ownership helped, and was of course part of the reason Oxford were there in the first place.

What was even more crucial was the presence in the United line-up of two of the biggest names in Indonesian football – naturalised Dutch forward Ole Romeny and young star Marselino Ferdinan.

Romeny knows his role. Still to command a regular berth in the Oxford side despite being a record signing in January, he patiently dealt with countless interviews, photo requests, meet and greets, and he was even a keepy-uppy king at one event in a place that LOVES ball juggling. When he scored the second U's goal in the second game it felt like he had, if not the world, then one of its most populous countries at his feet.

Sadly, it was only moments later that a crunching challenge ended his tournament and will make him a major doubt for the start of the season and for Indonesia's World Cup play-offs.

By then United had moved on from the cosmopolitan metropolis of Jakarta on the 'Whoosh' bullet train. It took half an hour to travel 100 miles and into the authentically Asian city of Bandung. But there was less for the players to do, they required security escorts to and from training – mainly just to clear a way through traffic which made the Oxford ring road in rush hour seem quiet.

Backpackers would love it. Any westerners are a curiosity and garner much attention. Professional footballers already have plenty of that.

Part two of Jerome Sale's tour recap will be published on Tuesday.

Image source, Getty Images

Oxford United duo Ole Romeny and Marselino Ferdinan face a race to be fit for the pre-season President's Cup final in Indonesia.

The U's reached the final of the tournament after a 4-0 victory over Indonesian side Arema FC on Thursday.

But Oxford's Indonesian stars will both need to prove their fitness for the final, with Ferdinan carrying a hamstring issue and Romeny, who scored in the win, stretchered off with an ankle injury.

"We had already lost players to injury and illness," U's boss Gary Rowett told BBC Radio Oxford

"For Ole, it looked like potentially quite a bad one but we'll see if he's available for the final."

Romeny, in particular, has impressed during the event, scoring several goals in front of large crowds at the tournament in his home country.

Oxford will play Thai side Port FC in Sunday's final.

Image source, Getty Images

Oxford United boss Gary Rowett says new signing Brian De Keersmaecker is acclimatising to life at his new club well.

The 25-year-old Belgian midfielder joined the U's on 1 July and scored on his debut in the entertaining 6-3 pre-season friendly win against the Indonesian All-Stars in Jakarta on Sunday.

"He's a real quality footballer. I think you just see with his weight of pass, his intelligence, he can play as a six, eight, or further forwards," Rowett told BBC Radio Oxford.

"It's always nice when you sign a player and very quickly you see that he is exactly what you thought he was - I think he will be an absolutely fantastic addition for us.

"He's settled straight into the group. The group kind of spend a little bit of time together, playing cards or having a coffee.

"He seems to be quite a big part of that already and that's what you have to do as a new signing sometimes - you have to immerse yourself into the team.

"It's a very easy group to be a part of but, nonetheless, he's settled in really quickly."

"This isn't Peterborough United away, is it?!"

The Dub have gone international!

BBC Radio Oxford's Jerome Sale catches up with the podcast from Indonesia, where Oxford United are competing in the President's Cup as part of their pre-season tour.

A trip overseas to Asia is something a little different for the U's but it's also one that can help them grow.

"For many players, it's the unknown. They have never been in this environment; far from home, two weeks away, hot and humid," Sale said.

"Even those who were slightly daunted have really been won over by the reception they've had here, the facilities have been fantastic, the way the game went without any problems.

"It's obviously good for branding, commercial revenue and making friends in an important market but it's better than that. It's okay for football as well from what I can see."

Listen to the full episode and more on BBC Sounds.

Jerome Sale
BBC Radio Oxford

Image source, BBC Indonesia

"I was at Wembley last year, I was at Northwich Victoria in the Conference, but this is something else," one supporter told us after Oxford United had beaten the Indonesian All-Stars 6-3.

Those fans and staff who remember the dark days of 15 years ago were struggling to take in what was admittedly a surreal scene.

More than 40,000 fans cheered as loudly for Oxford United's Indonesia internationals Ole Romeny and Marselino Ferdinan as their own All-Stars team.

The All-Stars were selected by public vote for the game - representing the U's was owner Erick Thohir who helped plunge a Britain's Got Talent type red buzzer before kick-off to launch the President's Cup.

United took control of group A, netting six times in a nine-goal thriller.

Romeny and Ferdinan entertained, with the former even demonstrating keepy uppies in open play to thrill the crowd if not one or two of his team-mates.

The United goals came from Mark Harris (2), Michal Helik, Tom Bradshaw, Przemyslaw Placheta and record signing Brian De Keersmaecker, who in his first Oxford appearance curled in a left-footed shot from 25 yards after shaking off defenders with a shimmy.

Signed from Dutch club Heracles a week ago, the 25-year-old Belgian said: "It's great to score a goal, especially on my debut.

"Normally I am used to playing preparation games in front of 500 people, this was an incredible atmosphere."

Oxford have now travelled on the 225mph "Whoosh" bullet train from the Indonesia capital to Bandung, 100 miles south where there will play club side Arema FC on Thursday and where they will be firm favourites to progress to Sunday's final.

Image source, Rex Features

Oxford United will get to see a different footballing culture during their pre-season trip to Indonesia, says boss Gary Rowett

The U's are involved in the six-team President's Cup with group matches against a Liga Indonesia All-Stars team and local top-flight side Arema FC before a third game and potentially a final.

"It's going to be an interesting trip," Rowett told BBC Radio Oxford.

"We're playing in a tournament so we'll hopefully get three games out there, and we'll get a chance to see a different culture, and get an understanding how football feels in a different culture."

Oxford, who have Indonesian internationals Marselino Ferdinan and Ole Romeny in their squad, will play their first match on 6 July against the All-Stars team at the country's national stadium in Jakarta.

"The heat and humidity may affect training but we're aware and on top of that and we'll plan for that," said Rowett.

"We'll take a lot of players but may leave some behind because we feel their futures are away from the club - it's this part of the season where you're trying to navigate between improving your squad and letting a few plays go and play regular football."

Oxford open their Championship season at home to Portsmouth on 9 August.