OXFORD United will no doubt be making use of the loan market as they look to build a squad ready for the demands of Sky Bet Championship football.
Victory in the League One play-off final last month means the U’s will be competing in the second tier of English football for the first time in 25 years.
We profiled six youngsters, from teams which finished between fifth and 12th in this season’s Premier League, who could be on United’s loan wish list.
PART ONE: Premier League youngsters U’s could snap up on loan
Alfie Devine (Tottenham Hotspur)
The 19-year-old attacking midfielder joined the Spurs academy from Wigan Athletic in August 2020, and made his debut in the third round of the Emirates FA Cup in January 2021.
He became Spurs’ youngest ever player and goalscorer in that game, when he netted in the 5-0 win at Marine.
He spent the first half of the 2023/24 season at Port Vale, scoring late on from the penalty spot as the Valiants beat the U’s 2-1 at the Kassam Stadium in September.
Devine then joined Championship side Plymouth Argyle on loan for the second half of the campaign, playing 15 times.
Will Fish (Manchester United)
The 21-year-old centre back captained Red Devils youth teams at various levels, and has impressed in two loan stints with Hibernian.
Fish played 21 times during the 2022/23 campaign, before racking up 45 games in the most recent season.
It’s likely there’ll be competition for him this summer, but he’d be a very useful addition at Grenoble Road.
James Hill (AFC Bournemouth)
The 22-year-old centre back came through the ranks at Fleetwood Town, making 53 appearances before heading to Bournemouth for a reported £1.6 million in January 2022.
A year later, he joined Hearts on loan, making 17 appearances. Hill made his Premier League debut in August, coming off the bench to replace Max Aarons in a 1-1 draw against West Ham United.
He then spent the first half of the 2023/24 campaign on loan at Blackburn Rovers, where he played 20 times, including 14 Championship starts, before returning to Bournemouth for the remainder of the season.
Bashir Humphreys (Chelsea)
The 21-year-old centre back made his senior Blues debut when he started in a 4-0 defeat at Man City in the third round of the Emirates FA Cup in January 2023.
He went on to join SC Paderborn on loan in Germany’s second tier, making 13 starts in the second half of the 2022/23 campaign.
This season, he signed for Swansea City on loan and played 26 times, including 22 starts in the Championship.
Ashley Phillips (Tottenham Hotspur)
The 18-year-old centre back signed from Blackburn Rovers, where he played 14 times, in August 2023.
After arriving at Tottenham in a reported £2m move, he joined Plymouth on loan in January, making 20 appearances, including 16 Championship starts.
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi (Crystal Palace)
The 21-year-old forward made his senior Palace debut in August 2021, coming on as a substitute in a 3-0 loss to Chelsea.
He shone on loan at Charlton Athletic during the 2022/23 season, grabbing 15 goals and 10 assists across 49 games, and winning the Addicks’ player of the year and players’ player of the year awards.
This season, he made eight appearances for Palace before a hamstring injury ruled him out from November. He’s back fit now though, and the Eagles may look to find him a loan move in order to get him back up and running again.
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