Stoke City team news vs Oxford with surprise return from injury
Mark Robins is making four changes to his Stoke City starting XI against Oxford United, including the surprise return of Lynden Gooch..
Enda Stevens, Nathan Lowe and Michael Rose are also recalled while Ben Pearson and Ben Gibson are named on the bench. Ben Wilmot, Niall Ennis, Josh Wilson-Esbrand and Tatsuki Seko drop out of the team from the mid-week defeat at Portsmouth.
Gooch - who had been used as an emergency left-back over the New Year period - has missed the last couple of matches due to a niggling injury but has been thrown straight back into the team, looking like he might be used on the right wing.
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Rose replaces Wilmot, who injured his foot in added time at Portsmouth. Influential Stevens is back in at left-back while Lowe is back to lead the line. Ennis, who has been linked with an exit to Blackpool, is among the substitutes.
Club captain Gibson has been missing lately through illness then injury while Pearson, who came through an under-21s game in the week, takes a place in the squad for the first time since suffering a hamstring injury in April. He is scheduled to play another 21s game this week at Reading as he continues his comeback.
Stoke City: Johansson, Tchamadeu, Phillips, Rose, Stevens, Baker, Burger, Moran, Gooch, Koumas, Lowe.. Subs: Bonham, Gibson, Wilson-Esbrand, Pearson, Seko, Junho, Tezgel, Vidigal, Ennis.
Oxford United: Cumming, Brown, Vaulks, Plachetaa, Brannagan, Rodrigues, Leigh, Dembele, Kioso, Helik, Bradshaw. Subs: Ingram, Long, Harris, Romeny, Phillips, El Mizouni, Matos, Goodrham, Ter Avest.
