Brannagan performed admirably in the holding position within Buckingham’s preferred 4-3-3 set-up at the end of last season, but the duty has been shared by Josh McEachran and Will Vaulks since promotion to Sky Bet Championship.

With the U’s 1-0 down at half-time at home against Millwall last month, Vaulks was withdrawn for Idris El Mizouni, as Brannagan then dropped back.

Brannagan then retained the deeper role for the trip to Loftus Road, his 300th appearance for United, and mustered the side’s sole shot on target in their disappointing 2-0 defeat.

READ ALSO: Our player ratings after disappointing defeat for U’s

U’s head coach Buckingham said of Brannagan: “He played there last year and played extremely well, so I wanted to have a look at that with the way that they pressed.

“We felt that he would able to be a bit more influential, certainly in the higher areas and getting us up the pitch a bit quicker.

“We know we’ve got him, we’ve got Will, and we’ve got Josh McEachran in there as well.”