Matt Bloomfield: Oxford United appoint former Wycombe Wanderers and Luton Town coach

Bloomfield began his managerial career at Colchester United before taking over from Gareth Ainsworth at Wycombe Wanderers in 2023.

After guiding the Chairboys to the automatic promotion places in the Championship amid the challenge of spending by Birmingham City and Wrexham last season, he left the club to take charge of Luton in January.

But Bloomfield was unable to prevent the Hatters from suffering successive relegations to the third tier and was sacked after a disappointing start to the season, with the club sitting 11th in the table.

The club already added two new players to its squad in January, with midfielder Jimmy Donnelly, 20, arriving on loan from Tottenham Hotspur for the rest of the season, and Brentford’s Miles Bert-Harris also signing a short-term contract.

The U’s play four league matches – against Bristol City, QPR, Leicester City and Birmingham City – over 15 days later this month.

Ed Waldron, Oxford’s head of football operations, said: “Matt stands out for his attention to detail, work ethic and strong belief in building success the right way. He is a coach with a very clear idea of ​​how he wants his teams to play.”

He added: “He has a proven track record of developing teams and individuals through strong leadership and communication, and we believe he is the right person to strengthen the group now and moving forward.”