Oxford United are interested in making former MK Dons and Oxfordshire-born midfielder Josh McEachran their latest acquisition, as reported by BBC Radio Oxford Sport.
McEachran’s contract with the relegated Dons expires at the end of this month and his former head coach, Liam Manning, is looking to make him his third signing in three days, following the arrivals of Ruben Rodrigues and Jordan Thorniley from Notts County and Blackpool respectively.
Who is Josh McEachran?
Josh McEachran was born in Oxford in 1993 and he began his career in the youth set-up at Chelsea. The midfielder was seen as the next big star of English football and even turned down a move to Real Madrid as a teenager.
He won the Under 17 European Championships with England, being named in the team of the tournament, and would then become a firm part of Carlo Ancelotti’s senior set-up. McEachran made his debut in a Champions League match versus MSK Zilinia with his debut in English competition a week later against Newcastle United in the League Cup.
Ancelotti was a massive influence on the young midfielder, retraining McEachran from a number ten to the deep-lying player he is today. The Italian’s departure was the beginning of the end for the talented youngster, with Andre Villas-Boas replacing him and restricting McEachran to just five appearances under his leadership.
He would then embark on a series of loan moves, firstly to Swansea City under his former youth coach Brendan Rogers. Reuniting with Rogers wasn’t the success McEachran had hoped for with only four Premier League appearances in his half a season loan. For the 2012-13 season, Middlesbrough would be the loan destination seeing McEachran work initially under Tony Mowbray and then Aitor Karanka at the Riverside. The 38 league games played that season remained the most he had managed until his final season at MK Dons.
Two short loan spells at Watford and Wigan were followed by a year abroad in the Dutch Eredivisie with Vitesse Arnhem. While McEachran was in Holland, Chelsea rehired Jose Mourinho and it was time for the Englishman to move on. He would make a reported £750 000 to then Championship Brentford.
Four years later, in 2019, McEachran signed for Birmingham City in what would prove an ill-fated move for the then 26-year-old as he would suffer a knee ligament injury that sidelined him for nine months. He would be released from his contract in January 2021, hooking up with MK Dons initially on a short-term deal. The Dons would suffer relegation at the end of the 2022-23 season having finished 3rd and only three points behind eventual champions Wigan Athletic and McEachran would leave on a free after 100 games for the club.
Writer’s View
Josh McEachran is an experienced midfielder with over 300 games to his name. His career would suggest that he won’t bring goals to Oxford but will add excellent cover in front of the defence and an eye for a pass. Liam Manning clearly likes the player, having worked with him previously and he is perhaps seen as someone to provide cover for Cameron Branagan and Ruben Rodrigues to impact the game further forward.
McEachran has a passing accuracy of over 84% from last season, created almost 50 chances and made over 50 interceptions suggesting he will add defensive solidity and key passes to an Oxford side looking to improve on their 2022-23 performance.
Being able to sign a 30-year-old with the experience that McEachran has, from Champions League matches to over 230 EFL matches, on a free transfer to add to the signings The U’s have already done is surely good business.
