Chris Wilder has completed his strikeforce for next season with a familiar face to Oxford United fans – the pacy Matt Green.

The 22-year-old ex-Cardiff City forward, who was at Oxford for the 2007-8 campaign – with ten goals in 16 starts – has signed on a season-long from Torquay United.

And United’s manager has urged the fans to back his new signing, just as he has done, even though Green upset many by electing to move to Plainmoor 12 months ago instead of staying with the U’s.

Wilder opted for Green, to supplement his main two of James Constable and Jack Midson, because of the player’s desire to return to Oxford, and also because he offers the team a strong attacking force out wide.

Green was in fact the preferred option to Kidderminster’s Matthew Barnes-Homer from the very start, and it was his eagerness to play which probably swung it.

“I think it’s a great signing for us,” said Wilder. “He knows what he’s coming into, he knows a lot of the players here already, like Fozzie, Adam Murray, and Billy Turley.

“Torquay have been great to let us have him and I’ve been really impressed with his desire to come here.

“That’s no disrespect to any of the other boys who have come, because they have all shown a great desire to sign, but I would say this boy has shown a greater desire than anyone else.

“He could have quite easily sat at Torquay, or moved to another club, and with what happened last year taken the easy way out, but he wanted to come.

“He wasn’t scared, and was confident in his own ability.

“I understand there will be people out there who will know what’s gone off in the past with Matt.

“All I’ll say is that it was a 21-year-old boy who had to make that decision, not a 28 or 29-year-old footballer that did it.

“It’s nothing detrimental to Torquay. They beat Oxford United in the race for Matt Green, and Matt made that decision.”

Green says he hopes to benefit from that experience of being with a promotion-winning squad and do it again at the Kassam Stadium.

“I’m really pleased to come back,” he said. “As soon as I found out the club was showing a lot of interest, my mind was made up really.

“I had a great time I was here before, it was a shame the way the story got portrayed. I hope the fans see that I was just a young lad and I just want to do well in my football career.

“I feel I’ve got a lot to prove to the fans, I just hope I can come here now and everyone can give me the support I need to go and do the business.”

Oxford have given Green a thorough medical, and talked to Torquay’s physio, so are confident that his knee problems are a thing of the past.

The season-long loan suits both clubs because, as he is under 24, Torquay would be entitled to compensation for his “development” should Green move permanently elsewhere before 2011.