Is Brannagan starting for Oxford a bad thing

[Lost Seasider]

JT is a decent enough defender at league 1 level but that’s it. Oxford will pick him up on a free at the end of the season and it will be good business on there part but if we are deluding ourselves trying to get a couple of 100k knocked off the Brannagan price then we are deluding ourselves.

We have an option for another year.

Even if it's just £100,000 or so it's worth having, if only to p*** off Karl Robinson.

 

[NewburyOne]

We have an option for another year.

Even if it's just £100,000 or so it's worth having, if only to p*** off Karl Robinson.

We would definitely take up the option on Thornily, just as we have done other players, who we then sold a few weeks later. It would be the equivalent of turning down free money, Sadler isn't daft.

 

[King Billy]

We would definitely take up the option on Thornily, just as we have done other players, who we then sold a few weeks later. It would be the equivalent of turning down free money, Sadler isn't daft.

To be fair clubs normally do that when the player has decent sell on value, we are talking a nominal amount here and even then we are dependant on a league 1 club stumping up the cash in these uncertain times. Thornily by all accounts is on a decent wage here and I don’t think we will want to be wasting another 12 months on him when he clearly isn’t part of our plans. I can understand Oxfords position in not being overly swayed by offering Thornily if I’m honest.

 

[bfcpete]

A pity we haven't inserted decent release clauses over the years

 

[Adams Kebab]

He'll be 26 in just over 3 months time having only ever played lower league football. The Championship is quicker and he'll be having to adjust to that at an age where you start to pick up more injuries and don't have that many more years left before you're slowing back down.

By comparison, Wayne Rooney was scoring goals in the Premier League at 16 and for England at 17. Careers go quick and Branagan might have already used up his best years whilst playing at a lower level than he maybe should have done.

Branagan signed a contract extension in 2020 to tie him to Oxford until 2023. By then he will be 27. That sounds like someone who is content to remain at League One level especially if he agreed to a high buy clause tying him even more to his current club.

There must be a reason why other far wealthier clubs than us haven't snapped him up before now and I think it's because the player is happy enough with his lot at the level he's currently at.

Ha ha. I’m sure you are a parody account

 

[JJpool]

The release clause shows how derogatory the bids from Forest are for Josh Bowler. If we got 1.25 million for Josh and had to pay 1.5 million for Brannagan that just doesn't make sense. I would rather keep Bowler as a player like him, although massively frustrating at times, is someone who really can change a game and his skills only come along once in a while.

As it stands I would rather loan a central midfielder and maybe purchase Ebou or Fulton and wait to the end of the season to make major purchases and see how the injury situation is. Once Carey is back he will be one of the first names on the team sheet and who knows how Stewart, Ward and Virtue are going to recover. If, and it's a big if, Stewart can come back now and play injury free for the rest of the season then he is a better player than Brannagan. I am not a fan of the January window. I would be much happier if we got Bowler to sign a new long contract and get a couple of loans in and buy a one of the two mentioned above.

Yep a top league 1 midfielder vs one of if not at times the best dribbler in the championship. I've not seen many in the prem that can run with the ball like he does. Yes his end product isn't always as good but has improved.

A player that gets fans off their seat, if they sit down that it. The type of player you pay to watch.

To take him off us in Jan, when were short anyway, when league 1 players are rated at 1.5m with a similar length of contract.

For me wingers that skillful are worth more.

 

[Seainsea]

Yep a top league 1 midfielder vs one of if not at times the best dribbler in the championship. I've not seen many in the prem that can run with the ball like he does. Yes his end product isn't always as good but has improved.

A player that gets fans off their seat, if they sit down that it. The type of player you pay to watch.

To take him off us in Jan, when were short anyway, when league 1 players are rated at 1.5m with a similar length of contract.

For me wingers that skillful are worth more.

Agree totally with this. Bowler is worth way more than Brannagan. If Bowler starts to consistently add goals and assists his value is going to rocket. Forest are trying to get him cheap, you can't blame them for trying but we should tell them eff off. I don't really get the desperation to sign Brannagan, anyone would think he's the next Kevin De Bruyne. The position we're in the League it makes more sense to get someone on loan like Fulton whose tried and tested at this level.