Swansea City should fight to beat Leeds United and Sunderland AFC in Oxford United transfer race | OneFootball

Swansea City are among the clubs linked with Oxford United's Tyler Goodrham, who could prove an extremely shrewd acquisition

Swansea City face stiff reported competition from the likes of Coventry, Leeds United and Sunderland for Oxford's Tyler Goodrham, but that should not deter Luke Williams from putting up an extremely strong fight to land the talented young playmaker.

As the January transfer window continues to toil away towards its conclusion on February 3, it's becoming increasingly clear just how sore Swansea's need is for mid-season additions.

It has been a hellish start to the new calendar year for Swans, who commenced 2025 with a chastening 4-0 defeat away to relegation strugglers Portsmouth - which was inspired by Josh Murphy - before suffering consecutive 3-0 losses against Southampton and Cardiff City after a 1-1 draw with West Bromwich Albion.

The FA Cup third-round exit at St Mary's was a blow, though it had precious little on Saturday afternoon's south Wales derby humilation at the hands of bitter rivals Cardiff, who reclaimed the bragging rights with an unprecedented, yet wholly deserved victory as Luke Williams' side fell some way off exhibiting the sort of intensity and passion which have underpinned their greatest scalps over the old enemy in recent years.

Williams himself faces a real battle in getting back onside with supporters, who were left fuming in the wake of Saturday's second-half capitulation in the Welsh capital amid a sour mood around the club as of late.

The ex-Notts County boss was linked to the vacancy at West Brom, which has since been filled by Tony Mowbray, but stopped short of playing down the speculation and now needs to fire Swans back up the league table in order to regain the trust of supporters.

One way to do that, of course, is by bringing in the requisite additions this side quite evidently needs - and one could end up being Goodrham.

Swansea's transfer interest in Oxford's Tyler Goodrham amid Leeds, Sunderland and Coventry claim

According to a recent report from Football Insider, Swansea are joined by Coventry, and promotion-chasing duo Leeds and Sunderland, in the hunt for Goodrham's much-coveted signature.

It's said the second-tier quartet are 'keeping close tabs' on the 21-year-old, who has earned a reputation as one of the EFL's premiere young talents after enjoying a stunning breakthrough at the Kassam Stadium over the last two seasons.

A product of the U's academy, Goodhram made his professional debut all the way back in the 2019/20 campaign but has come into his own in the last eighteen months after undertaking loan stints away from the club. Goodrham scored 10 goals and made a further five assists across all competitions to help Oxford to promotion from League One via the play-offs last time out and he has continued to make a positive impression at Championship level in spite of the side's struggles for the majority of the current campaign, with four strikes and three assists under his belt after 28 appearances.

For the time being at least, it's not yet clear just how much Oxford would be demanding in order to allow the winger to move on to pastures new.

However, his age and performances over the last two campaigns, coupled with his status as an academy graduate and the fact he is still under contract for another two-and-a-half years, will all likely mean he won't be arriving cheaply, which admittedly could impose a considerable hurdle for Swans.

But there is a school of thought that Swansea need to make a statement of intent in the remainder of this month after what was, by and large, an underwhelming summer window, and to alleviate the growing scrutiny surrounding the club. Goodrham, then, could be exactly that.

Swansea City should fight to beat Leeds, Sunderland to Oxford United's Tyler Goodrham

It's little wonder teams higher up the Championship food chain are running the rule over Goodrham, who has proven himself more than capable of acclimatising to the trials and tribulations of the second-tier.

Sure, a move to a club like Leeds or Sunderland, for example, would likely bring top-flight football much quicker - almost certainly next season for at least one of those two clubs - while much will be expected of Coventry under Frank Lampard in 2025/26. But, if he is considering an exit, Goodrham may have to weigh up just how probable regular match minutes would be at Leeds or Sunderland, with Daniel Farke's side abundantly stocked in terms of wide options in particular.

Capable on either flank or through the middle as an attacking midfielder, Goodrham's positional flexibility is a considerable plus point for a player still so early on in his development and offers extra substance to the interest he has from the top-end of the division.

However, at this stage of his career, he simply needs to be playing week-in, week-out just as he is at Oxford, and the Swansea.com Stadium is no doubt the best destination to meet that particular factor right now.

It's no secret Swansea urgently need fresh impetus on the flanks. Albeit to varying degrees, the bottom line is that Ji-Sung Eom, Ronald Pereira and Florian Bianchini - two of whom were signed just last summer - have all struggled to consistently deliver for Williams to date, meaning Goodrham could walk straight into this Swansea side.

Goodrham has an exceptionally-high technical ceiling, with his ball-carrying, close control and creative forward passing in behind all core hallmarks of his game.

They're all traits which have been absent from Williams' team as of late, while Goodrham's age and significant potential resale value strategically aligns with a club which has had to cut back financially ever since relegation from the Premier League in 2018 and has instead aimed - with mixed results - to recruit a lower-cost with the intention of collecting considerable future profit.

No shortage of talent has been developed in these corners of south Wales either, which could also appeal to Goodrham. The same can be said for Williams' heavy possession-based style, which fits a ball-to-feet, tricky and inventive playmaking winger like Goodrham down to a tee.

Swansea are in mid-table right now, and that's likely where they will finish the season. Whether the financial muscle is there behind the scenes to direct a more threatening charge towards play-off contention and beyond from August onwards remains unclear, but considering the interested parties at this moment in time, Swansea could well prove the best immediate destination for Goodrham's development if he intends on a switch, while any potential arrival would also offer a huge benefit to the Jack Army.