DES Buckingham says his decision to bring Josh McEachran back into the starting line-up was an attempt to increase his side’s goal threat by getting Cameron Brannagan further forward.

McEachran began the game against Reading last night, his first Sky Bet League One start since the draw at home to Wycombe Wanderers on October 28.

The Chelsea academy graduate was deployed as the deepest of United’s midfielders, with Brannagan and Marcus McGuane playing in front of him when the U’s had the ball.

When out of possession, McGuane dropped back next to McEachran, leaving Brannagan as the advanced midfielder.

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United head coach Buckingham said: “When I look at the players that have scored so far for us this season and the top three goalscorers, Billy [Bodin] wasn’t fit, Ruben [Rodrigues] was out, and Greg Leigh’s been out for a while.

“We knew Cam would offer a goal threat, so we wanted to get him further forward. To do that, we wanted someone who’s comfortable to play as a six.

“It was a choice of either leaving Cam back there, which would take away our goal threat, or bringing Josh in, who’s a very good ball player, and for Josh to try and find those passes.”

Witney Gazette:

Buckingham also made a half-time switch against the Royals, doing so now for all six games he has overseen since taking charge.

At the Select Car Leasing Stadium, Jordan Thorniley was withdrawn after collecting a yellow card, with Joe Bennett replacing him.

The alteration saw Ciaron Brown drop into the centre of the U’s defence, allowing Bennett to play at left back.

On the decision to take off Thorniley at half-time, Buckingham said: “Just before half-time, he had to step out of the way of making a tackle, and we knew that if they got a chance in the second half on the break, the last thing I wanted to do was lose another player across that backline because we’re a little bit scarce there at the moment.

“We took him off to protect him, and it was good because it also allowed Ciaron to step back in to centre back and partner Elliott [Moore], and it also got us 45 minutes into Joe Bennett, which puts him in a strong position to push for a start now, giving us other options.”

Buckingham added: “I’ve come in at a time when the team was doing well, and since I got here, we’ve had some pretty substantial injuries to key players, but that’s not an excuse.

“For the games going forward, you’ll start to see the structure, how we want to play and what we want. People will start to see that a lot more.”