Oxford United have confirmed the permanent signing of forward Owen Dale for an undisclosed fee from League One side Blackpool FC.
Dale made 32 appearances in all competitions for Blackpool in the first half of the 2023/24 campaign. The versatile forward made his last appearance for the Tangerines during their 2-1 victory over Bristol Rovers on January 20.
Oxford moved for the 25-year-old following a lack of regular first-team starts. In League One this season, Dale made just seven starts for Neil Critchley’s Blackpool before departing.
However, Dale joins the U’s with plenty of League One experience throughout his career. Last season, the 25-year-old played 43 matches on loan at Portsmouth and has made over 100 career appearances in England’s third tier.
When speaking to the official Oxford United website, manager Des Buckingham said he was looking forward to adding Dale’s positive approach and experience to his frontline.
“He is an exciting player. He gets at defenders, has a lot of energy and has played over 200 games so he knows his game and we feel still has plenty of potential to keep improving.”
Dale also explained his decision to shift from eighth place Blackpool to Oxford, who currently sit inside the League One play-offs by one point. The 25-year-old said linking up with a U’s side challenging for promotion and Buckingham’s ambition were key factors in his arrival.
“I played against Oxford earlier in the season and really liked the way things are set up here. I met the Manager and know he has big plans and, having watched them against Portsmouth on Tuesday night, you can see what a good side they are.
I know there are also players coming back into the group who will strengthen the squad for a real push between now and the end of the season.”
Wrtier’s View
Dale’s arrival shows that Buckingham was intent on strengthening the attacking areas during the January window. The former Blackpool attacker is the third forward to join the U’s following the arrivals of striker Will Goodwin and winger Kyle Edwards.
There will now be plenty of healthy competition and depth in the Oxford frontline and Dale will help relieve some of the goalscoring pressure on joint top-scorer Mark Harris as the U’s step up their play-off challenge.
