Wallace in: Oxford United can have a dream week in the January transfer window with these 2 deals | OneFootball

Wallace played best football under Rowett who is now at Oxford, could the two link up again?

Oxford United have hit a rich vein of form at a crucial part of the season under new boss Gary Rowett. The new boss has used his Championship experience to steady the ship and make United harder to beat.

Now Rowett has a few wins under his belt, and his new Oxford side sit five places above the drop zone, the former Millwall manager will be looking to bring in some players to fit in with his style of play.

The club have already promised to back the team in January in a bid to stay in the Championship next season. The board made the unpopular decision to sack Des Buckingham as manager after their loss to Sheffield Wednesday before Christmas.

The choice to sack Buckingham was met with outrage from the fanbase, but was defended by the board as a decision to get the best out of the players and keep United in the Championship, which they felt wasn't happening under Buckingham.

The sacking of the former Oxford manager was a statement of intent from the board. They would've lost a lot of money cutting Buckingham's contract short, and Rowett is an experienced manager at this level, so his salary won't be a small one either. The board clearly have a financial interest in staying up. In fact, it seems that they feel getting relegated simply isn't a viable option for them.

So far, so good.

So, United fans should be expecting to see some money invested in the side this January. Football League World takes a look at two deals which would mark a dream week in the January transfer window for the Yellows:

In: Jed Wallace

Rowett already has four league games under his belt for his new side, and it seems like the players are buying in to what the new boss wants. United clearly need to be harder to beat, and there's a lack of Championship experience on the pitch.

Will Vaulks has over 200 appearances in the league, but aside from that, United's squad is mostly made up of players who have spent the majority of their time in League One. Players like Mark Harris and Ciaron Brown have a bit of experience in this division with Cardiff City, along with Przemysław Placheta, who played for Norwich City, Swansea City and Birmingham City at this level. But even still, these are players with less than a full season of Championship experience each.

Jed Wallace has over 350 Championship appearances to his name, and is a proven player at this level. The former Millwall player is an attacking midfielder/right-winger, who has regularly scored goals in his career.

The 30-year-old has been at West Bromwich Albion since the start of the 2022/23 season, making almost 100 appearances in the previous two campaigns. This season, Wallace has been used off the bench regularly, and as West Brom look to push for promotion, Wallace has found himself looking to make an impact in a short amount of time. That hasn't happened yet this season, and the Englishman is struggling for goals at this moment in time. However, previous seasons have shown just how good he can be when played in the right system.

His three starts this season have been as captain, showing his character and just how highly he is viewed by the club.

Wallace and Rowett worked together for several years at Millwall, with the two forming a real partnership together. Speaking to the London News Online, Rowett said: "He is quite a unique player with quite a unique style. Jed is a team player, but he is also very individual as well in the way he plays. He plays with a freedom, and he plays quite loosely, at times, on and off the ball, because that is what we’ve needed to do to get the best out of him."

When Wallace left for the Baggies, Rowett said: "Of course we have got to replace his goals and assists. It’s funny really. I think we’ll probably miss Jed’s assists and goal involvements – along with the lift he would give us in matches that you need at times – more than his goals."

Wallace plays off the right-hand side, a position where Oxford haven't been able to find a consistent player to play, although Placheta is in somewhat of a purple patch after two goals and two assists in his first three games under Rowett.

The Baggies are currently without a manager, after Carlos Corberán left for Valencia. With a new manager coming in soon, potentially looking to free up space and some money, could United force a loan move, or even a short-term contract, seeing as Wallace is a free agent in the summer and previously worked with Rowett? It could be the sort of player that helps to galvanize an inexperienced Championship squad and help United avoid the drop.

Out: Owen Dale

Towards the back end of Buckingham's time in charge, Owen Dale was proving to be a useful squad player to have. Dale was a crucial part of the team that won promotion to the Championship, but this season, he has had to make do with most of his appearances from the bench.

Dale has struggled to adjust to the quality of the division at times, but his pace, energy and tenacity have helped him put in some important performances during November and December. Despite this, his goal contributions haven't been anything to write home about, and his end product has fallen short of what you would expect of a player in this league.

Since Rowett entered the building, Dale hasn't featured. In fact, he wasn't even in the squad for the first three games, and was an unused sub in their 1-1 draw with Preston North End. Despite it being early days in the context of Rowett's managerial reign, Dale will be wondering when he will get some game time under the new boss.

With the announcement of record signing Ole Romeny, Dale now has even more competition. The Dutchman is a forward player, comfortable playing on either wing or as a 10.

Sometimes players just don't fit into a system, and perhaps Rowett already has eyes on a player he wants to bring to the club in Dale's position. And if that is the case, Dale will be looking elsewhere for game time, even if it's on loan till the end of the season. If Rowett fails to keep Oxford up this season, Dale is a fantastic League One option to have, so organising a quick loan could be a dream scenario for the club.