After a midweek defeat to Sheffield Wednesday, which saw the U’s end their unbeaten run which extended back to March, Oxford United were hosts to Yeovil Town on Saturday afternoon.
In familiar circumstances the opening passages were controlled by the hosts. Just six minutes into the encounter, Roofe was first to react Baldock’s saved shot but the forward could not convert past the advancing Artur Krysiak who deflected the shot past the post.
It did not take long for the hosts to break the deadlock. Superb tenacity from MacDonald saw him break into the Yeovil area before offloading O’Dowda who unselfishly lofted the ball back across goal to the waiting Hylton. The U’s striker directed his header past Krysiak and into the net.
Yeovil sporadically got a foothold in the game but were too easily overrun in the midfield by the U’s so struggled to maintain possession.
All the chances were being created by Oxford. The next came on 31′ when Roofe chested down a Mullins through-ball which ultimately fell to Hylton who found space but could not divert his shot past Krysiak.
The referee signalled for half time which was largely dominated by the home side who passed crisply and proficiently around the Yeovil side.
The U’s started the second half slower which allowed Yeovil to gain a slight foothold in the game however they could not muster any clear chances and the home side handled the visitors well.
Oxford yet again built momentum and were soon dazzling The Glovers with neat interchanges and fluid pretty-pretty football. It was impressive how high Oxford were winning back possession.
On 55′ the magnificent Callum O’Dowda wriggled his way into the area after superb build-up play to release Roofe who turned his man and fired towards goal only to be denied again by the impressive Krysiak at full stretch to his left.
Oxford continued to press and were very profession in the manner in which they conducted the victory. The match was settled 75′. Goal-scorer turned provider as Hylton returned the favour to Callum O’Dowda whose centre was met by the latter from close range to tap home.
Roofe came close from distance as his rasping effort from 30 yards dipped and swerved before cannoning off the bar and behind.
Oxford saw off the victory in style in a match where 2-0 was flattering to Yeovil. Very pleasing performance from the home side.
http://www.footyformation.com/team/view/slug/n76
Oxford United
| Sam Slocombe – Untroubled throughout the game. However his distribution was very poor and he looked the least composed player in the Oxford side | 4.0 |
| George Baldock – Solid defensively and provided good attacking support with O’Dowda and MacDonald. | 7.5 |
| Johnny Mullins – Untroubled throughout the game. Proficient in the air and played the ball out nicely from the back. | 7.0 |
| Jake Wright – The captain was composed and had good distribution. Good performance from Wright who was never really under any pressure | 7.0 |
| Joe Skarz – Struggled with the pace of Cornick at times and gave away a silly foul which resulted in a yellow card. However he conducted his performance professionally. | 6.0 |
| Callum O’Dowda – Superb energy and gave fullback Smith a great deal of problems. An assist and a goal topped off yet another marvellous performance | 8.5 |
| Liam Sercombe – Great tempo to his game and dictated the midfield. His energy was pivotal in United’s dominating performance. | 8.0 |
| Danny Rose – Sercombe’s energy allowed Rose to have almost a free role in the midfield. His composure and quick interchanges were invaluable | 9.0 |
| Alex MacDonald – Anonymous at times but could come alive as quickly as he disappeared. His tenacity was the making of the first goal so credit where it is due. | 6.5 |
| Kemar Roofe – Very unlucky not score as Krysiak kept him at bay multiple times before one effort from range hit the bar. He will be disappointed that is chances came to no avail. | 6.5 |
| Danny Hylton – Superb energy and drive from the omnipresent Hylton. A typically characteristic performance from the forward. | 7.0 |
Substitutions
| Josh Ruffels – Didn’t get involved in the game during his time on the field. | 5.0 |
| Patrick Hoban – Struggled to get in the game and missed a glorious chance late on. He will have to be more clinical before he finds a regular starting position. | 4.0 |
| Ryan Taylor – Good hold up play but failed to make a substantial impact during his brief cameo role | 5.0 |
Yeovil Town
| Artur Krysiak – Made a few vital saves to prevent the hosts from scoring. Was an unsung hero in the Yeovil side who prevented the scoreline to be an embarrassing one. | 7.0 |
| Connor Roberts – Had a challenging afternoon but kept his cool in a somewhat fragile defence. | 6.0 |
| Stephen Arthurworrey – The lumbering centre-half was commanding in the air but let Hylton get the better of him for the goal they conceded. | 6.5 |
| Jakub Sokolik – Struggled in the air and put in a very disconcerting 90 minutes. | 5.0 |
| Nathan Smith – Reckless and ill-disciplined performance. Was lucky not to see red for an accumulation of poor fouls. Also his distribution was very poor. | 3.0 |
| Josh Wakefield – Struggled to overrule the United midfield and was non-existent at times. Good energy but overall a poor performance. | 6.0 |
| Matt Dolan – Was overran too easily and was ineffectual from midfield. Was bossed too easily by Sercombe and have away possession too easily. | 5.0 |
| Alex Lacey – Distribution was poor and he did not get a foothold in the game. Subbed after 30 minutes. | 3.0 |
| Harry Cornick – Was Oxford’s biggest threat but failed to utilise his pace which was troubling Skarz. | 5.0 |
| Ryan Bird – Not proficient enough in the air and needed someone desperately to play off him. | 6.0 |
| Jack Compton – Didn’t poise too much of a threat to the United defence and didn’t trouble Baldock at all. | 0.0 |
Substitutions
| Mark Beck – Did not give the side any more dynamism or edge. | 4.0 |
| Davis Norris – Occasionally brought a spark to the midfield but distribution was poor too often. | 5.0 |
| Shaun Jeffers – Brought more pace to the side but could not muster any chances | 5.0 |
Man of the Match
| Danny Rose – Played with composure and a fluidity which helped undo the Yeovil defence. Terrific performance from Rose. | 9.0 |
