Brentford loan ace becoming key figure for Oxford United

Oxford United’s Midfield Mission: Yunus Konak Is Rising When It Matters Most

Oxford United are on a roll, and while several players have helped spark the team’s recent resurgence, midfielder Yunus Konak has emerged as a standout figure.

The 20-year-old joined on loan from Brentford in January and was immediately thrown into the starting lineup for Matt Bloomfield’s first match in charge against Bristol City. That debut, however, lasted just 45 minutes before Konak was substituted at halftime.

Reflecting on the midfielder’s excellent performance against Watford last weekend, Bloomfield admitted the adaptation period took longer than expected.

“We knew it would take time for him to adjust—coming from Brentford, being around a Premier League squad but not playing many minutes in the first half of the season,” the Oxford manager said. “And it maybe took a little longer than I thought. I was hoping to get him straight into the team.”

After his difficult debut, Konak dropped to the bench. He didn’t see the pitch again until coming on at halftime three matches later in a 2–0 loss to Birmingham City. Two more substitute appearances followed over the next five games, and he was left out of the squad entirely for February’s trip to Middlesbrough.

But for both Konak and the club, the 2–1 win over West Bromwich Albion proved to be a major turning point.

Returning to the starting XI for the first time since his debut in January, Konak helped Oxford secure a victory that kicked off a three-match winning run. Since then, the U’s have lost just once in eight games—a streak they’ll carry into their next fixture against Derby County.

Konak has since cemented his place in a side that has finally found consistency in both selection and performance. His form has even kept experienced midfielder Will Vaulks and the highly rated Northern Ireland international Jamie McDonnell out of the team.

In Oxford’s most recent outing—a crucial 2–0 win over Watford—Konak earned widespread praise and was named Player of the Match at the stadium.

The Turkish youth international, who hails from a city named Batman in Turkiye, has shown clear growth since stepping into senior men’s football with the U’s. He looks noticeably more confident, physically stronger, and has developed a knack for popping up across the pitch to disrupt opposition play.

“He trains really hard. He’s one of the first out every day to train properly,” Bloomfield added. “Since he’s come back into the team, he’s grabbed his opportunity, and today was probably his best performance to date. We hope he can keep putting in those types of performances in our next four games.

“I think Yunus is going to be a really big player in the future at some point, and we’re really fortunate to have him with us for the time we do.”