Barnsley v Oxford preview
Friday 3 August 2018 15:38, UK
Zeki Fryers and Ryan Hedges are unavailable for Barnsley’s Sky Bet League One opener against Oxford on Saturday, the club’s first competitive match under boss Daniel Stendel.
Kenny Dougall could make his competitive debut in the match at Oakwell after joining from Sparta Rotterdam last month. The 25-year-old Australian midfielder scored for his new club in the 1-1 draw with Hull on Saturday.
Oxford fine-tuned their preparations for the clash by training at the Football Association’s St George’s Park in Burton. And it gave new arrival Sam Smith, signed on a season-long loan from Reading, the chance to meet up with his new team-mates ahead of the opener.
Oxford manager Karl Robinson will need to check on the fitness, meanwhile, of another loan signing – midfielder Marcus Browne – who has been troubled by a knee problem.
But Oxford are otherwise in good shape, with striker Jon Obika looking to continue a rich vein of form that saw him score eight goals during pre-season, which was one short of the club record set by Billy Whiteside 31 years ago.
Opta stats
Barnsley, who face Oxford on the opening day for the very first time, have only won one of their last four meetings with the U's (D1 L2), last facing them back in 1999 when they lost 0-1.
Oxford have only won once at Barnsley in their 11 Football League visits (D2 L8), failing to score in nine of their trips to Oakwell.
Barnsley have lost each of their last five league matches on the opening day, the longest current losing run of all sides in England's top four tiers, along with Bristol Rovers.
Oxford have only lost one of their last six opening day fixtures (W3 D2), beating Oldham 2-0 in their season opener in 2017-18.
Oxford United boss Karl Robinson has never lost on the opening day of a football league season, winning six of his eight fixtures (D2), including each of the last four with both MK Dons and Charlton Athletic.
