Oxford United’s Alex Gorrin wants to add goals to his game this campaign he has told the Oxford Mail.

Gorrin, 28, previously spent time in Portugal, Hungary and Scotland but his first goal in European football didn’t arrive until last November when he converted a penalty in a 1-1 draw at Portsmouth following his arrival at the Kassan Stadium in 2019.

Operating as a holding midfielder, Gorrin is used primarily to protect his defence rather than contribute to the U’s goal tally, but the Spaniard is now pushing further forward in an aim to add to his solitary strike against Pompey. Gorrin said: “It’s something I’ve been doing in training, just to be more aggressive on the ball. Hopefully something lands to me, if I can put it in the back of the net and we get three points then happy days,” although Gorrin was keen to clarify that “I just want us to win, so I don’t care who scores.”

However, despite Gorrin’s aim to become a more regular goalscorer he has assured the U’s fans that this will not prevent him being the team’s midfield enforcer. Gorrin said “it (tackling) is just part of the game. If I’m not tackling I’m not as effective.” Although he further stated that he didn’t look at his disciplinary record, Gorrin has already collected three bookings this campaign and two more will trigger a one-match ban.

Oxford are currently in mid-table after a mixed start with three wins from their first seven games and will look to aim for more consistency starting with Cheltenham’s visit on Saturday.

The Verdict

Oxford were the third top scorers in League One last season so goalscoring has not been an issue for them in the past. However, they have notched only nine times this season so far with only winger, James Henry, scoring more than once. The U’s will therefore welcome contributions from all areas of the pitch in an attempt to establish themselves as promotion candidates once again following last season’s play-off semi-final defeat to Blackpool.