Oxford United manager Karl Robinson has played down talk of bringing another defender to the club during the transfer window.<\/p>\n
The U’s have shipped eight goals from four league games and have had numerous injuries to contend with in the early stages of the season, so is the Oxford boss right to focus his attention elsewhere?<\/p>\n
Promotion hopefuls Oxford United 21st in League One with just one win from their opening four league games. The U’s lost at Lincoln City and at home to Sunderland<\/a> before recording their first win – a 4-1 victory at Accrington Stanley.<\/p>\n But Saturday’s defeat at Gillingham saw the U’s concede another three goals and questions were raised about defensive reinforcements.<\/p>\n Following the sale of Rob Dickie to Queens Park Rangers<\/a>, Robinson has 23-year-old Elliott Moore<\/a> and 22-year-old Rob Atkinson<\/a> as his central partnership. Moore played 35 times in all competitions last season following his summer move from Leicester City<\/a>, but was partnered by the experienced Dickie. However, this season, Moore has taken on the more experienced role and is alongside Atkinson – who is playing in his first season in the Football League following his arrival from Eastleigh.<\/p>\n The U’s do have experience in 34-year-old John Mousinho,<\/a> but the club captain, who also featured in we’ll over 30 games last season, is both phasing out of the game by taking up a coaching role, but has also picked up an injury.<\/p>\n It leaves Robinson with Sam Long<\/a>, a centre back that has spent most of his career at right-back, and 18-year-old Nico Jones, who the U’s boss feels isn’t ready for first-team football.<\/p>\n To make matters worse, Josh Ruffels<\/a> – the clubs only recognised left-back – has just returned from a shoulder injury, while summer signing Sean Clare<\/a> has failed to hit the heights on the right side of the defence, despite spending most of his career in midfield.<\/p>\nWhat Karl Robinson Said<\/h3>\n