Oxford United got a dream start to life back in the second tier of English football, with a dominant 2-0 win over Norwich City at Kassam Stadium.
Oxford dominated the game and were rewarded for their early dominance as Mark Harris opened the scoring, before Cameron Brannagan helped seal the game and double their lead.
Whilst Oxford were excellent, Norwich were disappointing. They failed to cause any threat to the hosts, even after going two goals down, with just two shots on goal the entire game.
Opened in 2001, this was the first time that the Kassam Stadium has experienced a game in the second tier of English football, their first time at this position in the football pyramid since the 1998-99 season. The home fans certainly let their excitement of this occasion show, with a loud atmosphere in Oxford.
It was a pre-match dominated by talk of a Norwich departure, with winger Jonathan Rowe deciding to withdraw from the matchday squad after links with Marseille. New Norwich manager Johannes Hoff Thorup spoke on the situation. Speaking to Sky Sports during his pre-match interview, he said:
“John and I had a meeting this morning and he came to me and said that with so many things going on and so much interest, he was maybe not ready to perform today.”
The first half started well for Oxford with the hosts almost getting a goal straight away, Mark Harris somehow failing to get on the end of a Tyler Goodrham low cross, eventually being saved by the offside flag.
Oxford continued to be a threat early on, forcing corners and saves from Norwich goalkeeper Angus Gunn. The visitors had their moments but the first half belonged to the hosts, who continued to push and eventually got their reward when Harris opened the scoring in the 28th minute.
Canaries defender Grant Hanley attempted to clear a long ball but fell over after marginal contact from Harris, who picked up the ball in the box and cut inside past Shane Duffy before bundling the ball into the back of the net past Gunn. After 19 goals for the club last season, he will once again be a key part of the team this season.
Oxford were not contempt with a 1-0 lead and continued to push and should have made it 2-0 five minutes later. Trying to play out from the back, Gunn’s pass was poor and met the feet of Will Vaulks, who went for the effort but his shot was narrowly wide of the net. This was a let off for Gun and Norwich.
More of the same in the second half
Norwich would have wanted to start the second half well, given their poor first half outing. However, Oxford continued to cause problems and hit the woodwork just five minutes in.
They would soon double their lead, as Brannagan found the net just before the hour mark. Goodrham picked up the ball on the edge of the box, and after a one-two with Rúben Rodrigues, he found Sam Long on the overlap.
Long sent a powerful low cross into to the box and Brannagan’s first-time effort curled into the bottom right corner, sending the home crowd wild.
Norwich started to improve in the final ten minutes of normal time but by this time it was way too late and even with Amankwah Forson’s shot on goal, this was still straight at goalkeeper Jamie Cumming, who was not tested all game.
Both teams went through the motions towards the end of the game, with no real headlines in the four added minutes that were given. There were even chants of “Ole” from the Oxford fans as their team controlled the midfield battle.
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Player of the Match – Cameron Brannagan
Brannagan has been a key piece to this Oxford side over the past few years and showcased exactly why this is the case with a brilliant performance.
He was everywhere and was a key cog, pulling the strings in midfield. He was part of everything that was good for the hosts. He topped this off with his aforementioned brilliant finish that helped double Oxford’s lead.