DES Buckingham says that Malcolm Ebiowei will learn to be more composed in front of goal after his sliced effort against Swansea City.

Oxford United were 1-0 down with just under 20 minutes to go when a glorious opportunity was presented to Crystal Palace loanee Ebiowei.

Dane Scarlett intercepted a loose pass on the left-hand side and then played the ball down the centre for an unmarked Ebiowei, who got to the edge of the penalty area and then smashed wildly off target just as two Swans defenders charged across to meet him.

Despite what was an often flat performance from United, the chance was one of three good ones carved out during the second half, with other opportunities squandered by Mark Harris and Greg Leigh.

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U’s head coach Buckingham said: “I think there are three moments in the game. We haven’t played anywhere near the level that we’re capable of, yet we’ve still created three really big moments with firstly Mark, secondly Malcolm, when he went through, and the third one at the end with Greg Leigh.

“It’s frustrating, but it’s now making sure we get things right for Tuesday.”

On the Ebiowei miss, Buckingham added: “It reminded me of the opportunity Siriki Dembele had down at Portsmouth when he went through. It was exactly the same kind of moment.

“It was just rushed, he rushed his chance. As a young player, he’ll learn a bit more composure in those moments.”