Oxford United will be under no illusions when they welcome Bury on Saturday.
The Shakers may be at the wrong end of the table right now but a change of leadership this week makes them very dangerous opposition at Grenoble Road
“I expect a lot of intensity and a really tight game with plenty of pressing and closing down, and we will have to be up to the task” Manager Pep Clotet told iFollow earlier today.
“You look at the table and see where Bury are but the table doesn’t show the quality of the team. They made us suffer a lot at their place and caused us a lot of problems and we know the same can happen. All the fans will be expecting us to do something but I would like all the fans to come and get behind the team and help us, instead of coming and just expecting a result.”
United have scored over twice as many goals in the second half of games as in the first this season and Pep believes that patience could be key on Saturday.
“There is so much uncertainty in any game and you can’t always win it early, sometimes you have to wait until towards the end to get it” he said. “That’s the nature of the game and you have to be patient when that happens.”
United will be forced to make at least one change with Jack Payne moving on to Blackburn Rovers. Pep paid tribute to the on loan Huddersfield forward but also thinks he has options with the arrival of Cameron Brannagan, Isaac Buckley-Ricketts and Rob Dickie.
“Jack came on loan but had the commitment and passion and put in the hard work that made him look like our player” Pep said. “But we have three new players here and we bring players in always looking to make steps forward.”
iFollow subscribers can see the whole interview above including a fascinating insight into how United’s shape has changed over the course of the season. See or hear the whole game live in iFollow.
Tickets are available from oufctickets.co.uk and 01865 337533 for Saturday’s game. Come along and get behind the U’s.