MX23RW : Saturday, March 15 04:15:08| >> :120:76282:76282:

Karl Robinson claims Oxford players deserve status in history with promotion

Karl Robinson claims Oxford players deserve status in history with promotion
© Reuters
United take on Blackpool in the first leg of their semi-final on Tuesday.

Karl Robinson believes the current crop of players at Oxford will "deserve certain status in the club's history" if they are able to seal promotion to the Sky Bet Championship later this month.

Oxford, beaten finalists in last season's League One play-offs, secured a top-six finish for the second year in a row by thrashing Burton 4-0 on the final day of the regular campaign to set up a two-legged tie with Blackpool.

The U's will throw open their gates at the Kassam Stadium to a select few supporters for Tuesday evening's first leg against opponents who beat them at the same venue in March following goals from Kenny Dougall and Dan Ballard.

But Robinson is counting on the home fans making a difference as he challenged his players to write their names into the club's record books as they look to get back into the second tier for the first time in 22 years.

Robinson said on the club's official website: "The biggest excitement is that there will be fans back in the ground to watch us play. It's all about the players and the fans, they're the two biggest cogs within our football club.

"There are pictures all around the training ground and stadium of players celebrating with fans and they are a massive part of this football club, a real driver of this team's success. And it is success.

"We have achieved way beyond what we expected in two years. It surpasses where I thought we'd be, so we're under no pressure. If these players get promoted they deserve certain status in the club's history."

Oxford ended their campaign strongly by winning their final three matches and six of their last seven to guarantee sixth spot in the table and a chance to go one better than last season.

Blackpool head coach Neil Critchley is, therefore, wary ahead of the trip, saying on his club's YouTube channel: "What we know and what Oxford will know is there's two good teams.

"Karl's obviously got a very good set of players at Oxford and they've got the experience of being in the play-offs from last season, unfortunately falling at the final hurdle at Wembley, but they'll be looking to go one better.

"They've come into the play-offs in great form and they'll be looking to carry that momentum on. They're at home in the first leg, so they'll probably see that as an opportunity to get off to a good start."

Blackpool won their final four matches of the season to finish third and Critchley hopes their good form can continue.

He added: "We're eager to get going, all the teams in the play-offs will be eager to play and get going. The wait and anticipation is nice, but excitement is there and you want to get the games under way now.

"These games are full of emotion, full of drama, the psychological aspect of these games are different than your normal league games but we're ready, excited and looking forward to what should be a couple of fantastic games."

ID:447923: cacheID:447923:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4456:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Oxford United manager Karl Robinson pictured in October 2019
Read Next:
Karl Robinson calls for police involvement after headbutt allegation
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Birmingham CityBirmingham35257358233582
2Wycombe WanderersWycombe351911561332868
3Wrexham36208850302068
4Charlton AthleticCharlton36189947311663
5Stockport CountyStockport361711852341862
6Bolton WanderersBolton36186125954560
7Huddersfield TownHuddersfield361771247331458
8Reading361610105145658
9Leyton Orient361651551371453
10Barnsley36157145051-152
11Blackpool36121595448651
12Stevenage36139143437-348
13Lincoln CityLincoln361210144845346
14Rotherham UnitedRotherham35128153941-244
15Wigan AthleticWigan351110143234-243
16Exeter CityExeter35127163950-1143
17Bristol Rovers36126183955-1642
18Mansfield TownMansfield36118174150-941
19Northampton TownNorthampton361011153653-1741
20Peterborough UnitedPeterborough35109165260-839
21Burton Albion36712173653-1733
22Crawley TownCrawley3679203866-2830
23Cambridge UnitedCambridge3678213560-2529
24Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury3677223460-2628


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!