CALLUM O’Dowda has all the attributes to progress and play at a higher level, according to Oxford United teammate Johnny Mullins.

The 19-year-old, from Kidlington, has hit a rich vein of form, scoring his first U’s goal in their 1-1 draw at Exeter City on Saturday.

He followed it up by turning in an outstanding performance in the 3-1 win over Accringon Stanley on Tuesday night.

After both games, he was voted man-of-the-match by supporters in a poll on the Oxford Mail website.

Mullins, who described the teenager’s display against Accrington as “awesome”, has seen O’Dowda develop since coming into the first-team squad last season.

And the experienced defender is in no doubt the winger has every chance of having a bright future in the game.

“When you’ve got pace, the quick control and the low centre of gravity that Callum’s got, if you can put them all together it’s a dangerous combination,” Mullins said.

“He just looks very confident in what he’s doing.

“He’s had a little shoot-up in growth and you see him in the gym working on his weights to get stronger.

“But he’s electric and he believes in himself.

“He was brilliant against Accrington and hopefully he continues to grow.

“Where could he go? I couldn’t tell you, I’m sure he could go a lot further.

“The gaffer said it when he came in, but the younger players want to aspire to be higher than this and if he keeps going there’s no reason why he can’t be.”

The key now is to find some consistency, which is often the hardest element for young players to master.

But Mullins believes O’Dowda’s attitude will help keep him on an upward curve.

He said: “He’s just got to keep going.

“He can’t let a good performance go to his head – and I know it won’t, we wouldn’t let that happen.

“The thing with young players is you can’t expect them to be at that level for 90 minutes game after game, but he’s done it for the last two.

“He’s got a really level head and if he keeps going that’s all good.”

Latest United news:

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.