Oxford United struck gold with West Brom transfer agreement - They never looked back | OneFootball

Kemar Roofe's move to Oxford played out perfectly for Roofe and the U's.

Oxford United struck gold with their deal to sign Kemar Roofe from West Brom back in 2015.

Roofe was fairly inexperienced in the Football League when Oxford took a gamble on him, but the U’s were certainly rewarded for their business.

The striker netted 26 goals in all competitions as Michael Appleton’s side were promoted to League One at the end of the 2015/16 season.

As well as bringing success on the pitch, Roofe also supplied Oxford with a substantial payday the following summer, when he was sold to Leeds United for an undisclosed seven-figure sum.

Oxford will surely look back on that deal with satisfaction, knowing that it ticked all the boxes for them at the time.

Oxford took a gamble on Roofe and it paid off

When Oxford made the move to sign Roofe from West Brom for an undisclosed fee, it was a fairly bold move given how inexperienced he was at Football League level.

He had spent a chunk of the 2014/15 season on loan at the Kassam Stadium and impressed with six goals in 16 league games, but before that, Roofe had shown little to suggest what was to come.

Loan spells with Colchester United, Cheltenham Town and Northampton Town brought a total of just 17 league appearances combined.

However, Oxford’s gamble certainly paid off. Roofe notched 26 goals in all competitions in the 2015/16 season (18 of them in the league) and also recorded eight assists as Appleton’s men marched to promotion in the fourth tier.

The U’s also reached the final of the EFL Trophy that season, where they lost 3-2 to Barnsley under the Wembley arch.

That season arguably laid the foundations for Oxford to go on and have the success that they have lately, given that they haven’t tasted relegation since.

At the end of the 2015/16 campaign, Roofe was voted as League Two’s Player of The Year at the Football League Awards, as well as being named in the fourth division’s PFA Team of The Year.

He was sold that summer to Leeds United for an undisclosed seven-figure sum, representing almost an almost instantaneous and substantial profit for Oxford, who had also achieved their goal on the pitch.

Roofe has gone on to enjoy a good career at a higher level

Roofe’s time at Oxford was the first time when he truly showcased the ability that he had.

The striker has gone on to enjoy a successful career at a higher level of football, and he has even tasted Europa League football during his spell at Rangers.

After leaving Oxford, Roofe spent three seasons at Leeds. In each campaign, his goal return increased, to the point where he notched 15 league goals from just 33 games in 2018/19.

From there, Roofe spent a season in Belgium with RSC Anderlecht, where he again made a decent impact, finishing the season with seven goals and three assists from 16 games in all competitions.

He was then bought by Rangers ahead of the 2020/21 season for an undisclosed fee (reported to be in the region of £4.5m). Across his four years at Ibrox, Roofe netted 38 goals for the club and appeared in the famous blue shirt over 100 times.

His 14 league goals helped Steven Gerrard’s men end Celtic’s run of nine consecutive league titles in Roofe’s first season.

Now 32, Roofe is bizarrely still a free agent, having left Rangers in the summer. It remains to be seen whether that could prove to be the end of his career.

Oxford will certainly look back on their deal to sign the former Jamaican international with satisfaction. It isn’t very often a club in the lower leagues gets to bring a player in for one season, achieve their goal of promotion, and then instantly return a significant profit on their investment all within the space of one campaign.