Sport
Tyler Goodrham has followed the steps of Callum O’Hare
Coventry City have gathered a reputation for finding gems in the transfer market recently, and may have found their next recruit in Oxford United’s Tyler Goodrham.
The Sky Blues have made massive profits on the recent sales of Viktor Gyokeres and Gustavo Hamer, having given them both the opportunity to flourish under the tutelage of Mark Robins.
With over £25 million recouped by selling the pair to Sporting Lisbon and Sheffield United respectively last summer, City have the knack of returning ample profit from their recent transfer business, and the 20-year-old could well fit the bill ahead of the summer transfer window.
A number of Championship clubs were said to be circling during January – with the Sky Blues reported to be one of them – and a return to the Kassam Stadium could unearth the latest gem to be given licence to thrive at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
Tyler Goodrham transfer interest, Oxford United career
It wasn’t just Coventry that had rumoured interested in Goodrham’s services in the previous transfer window; with Bristol City, Middlesbrough, and Hull City all said to be keen on bring the young attacker into the Championship.
One area that the Sky Blues will have a more tempting deal in the clamour to bring the Oxford United man to the club is Robins’ ability to raise a player’s game while he nurtures them on the training ground, as we have seen time and time again over his seven years with the club.
You only have to look at the likes of Gyokeres or Hamer for players that have had a upgrade in quality during their time under the former Manchester United man, while his faith in Callum O’Hare has been repaid with plenty of match-winning performances from the ex-Aston Villa midfielder.
Goodrham could be the latest recruit to use City as a springboard into the higher echelons of the game, with the Midlands club earning themselves a pretty penny if yet another young star goes on to prove themselves worth of even greater success.
With O’Hare’s future at the club still in doubt after his refusal to sign a contract extension with the club past this summer, City will be on the lookout for a new exciting talent to create and convert chances in the final third for next season, and Goodrham has shown he can be the man for the job.
12 goal contributions this season only paints half the picture of the forward – who gained Irish citizenship last summer in the hope of turning out for the international side – with his ability to grab the game by the scruff of the neck helping the U’s in their League One promotion push this season.
His ability to thunder in efforts from distance, married with his finesse when inside the penalty area, making him a threat from all angles in the final third, just as his match-winning brace against Charlton Athletic proved earlier in the campaign.
| Tyler Goodrham Oxford United stats (all competitions) | ||||
| Appearances | 90 | |||
| Starts | 36 | |||
| Goals | 14 | |||
| Assists | 6 | |||
| Goal contributions/90 | 0.49 | |||
| Shots/90 | 1.92 | |||
| As of April 10th, 2024 Source: FBRef | ||||
That ability to find the target from 20+ yards is something that is invaluable to every club; with the ability to turn a game around out of low xG chances the sort of thing that a club like Coventry will be looking for in their statistical transfer recruitment process.
The Sky Blues will have seen that ability first-hand earlier in the campaign, as Goodrham got on the scoresheet in a 6-2 defeat to the Championship side in the third round of the FA Cup; the match that kick-started Coventry’s run to the semi-finals of the competition.
Another sublime effort from outside the penalty area turned out to be in vain that day, but even from the substitutes’ bench the 20-year-old managed to make his mark against a side a division above.
Despite Oxford’s season stuttering following the departure of Liam Manning to Bristol City, Goodrham has continued to excel under new boss Des Buckingham, although he has missed the odd game with injury in 2024.
Tyler Goodrham contract situation at Oxford United
The U’s acted quickly to quash any rumours of a January move, as they signed Goodrham down to a new long-term deal at the Kassam Stadium in the first two weeks of 2024; which thereby will guarantee they don’t lose one of their main marksman for peanuts.
The new deal is said to keep the player at the club until the summer of 2027, although his comments upon putting pen to paper will leave Cov hopeful of turning his head again during the off-season.
He told the Oxford Mail: “I’m absolutely buzzing. It’s been one I’ve trying to get and achieve, and to get it over the line and done, I’m buzzing.
“It’s a really big achievement for me and I love being here, and I love being a part of it. That stability is always nice, whatever job you’re in.
