It has been obvious for a while that Mark Sykes would not be extending a deal which expires this summer, bringing a close to an up-and-down three-and-a-half years at the Kassam.
There have been several challenges during his time at the club, particularly off the pitch, culminating in a prolonged contract discussion which never looked like getting off the ground.
Mark Sykes' bold and individual personality meant this situation was always a possibility, and his ostracisation from the United squad for their final home game to Doncaster was a disappointing end to what has been an incredibly successful season for both club and player.
It is easy to see why fans may feel frustrated, maybe even betrayed by his exit.
Having put time and effort into the development of Sykes, a raw talent who drifted in and out of games and sometimes appeared out of his depth when United found him, it is frustrating that Oxford only got one prolific season from the midfielder.
The patience Oxford fans have shown him perhaps warrants at least another year from Sykes, and they may feel he owes the club another attempt at promotion.
Maybe he should just show more committed to the end goal, as Cameron Brannagan, whose also had opportunities to leave, regularly does.
Yet comparing Brannagan and Sykes is a fruitless exercise. They are two completely different players.
Brannagan is clearly a more loyal figure and has enjoyed a much stronger relationship with Robinson than Sykes has.
Brannagan also no doubt feels a sense of connection with Oxford; they have kept faith in him through several difficult injuries and made him an integral part of their quest for promotion time and time again.
Sykes has simply not had these connections to the club, so why should he feel any need to stay at a level which he believes is below his capabilities?
Besides, not many people would have held grudges had Brannagan joined Leeds in the January of 2019, or when more Championship clubs came calling that summer. Nor would they have been particularly bitter had he chosen to leave for Blackpool at the numerous points they were chasing him throughout this season.
Brannagan, commendably, chose to stay, but it does not mean Sykes must do the same.
Sykes has developed into a player of immense quality this season, and he deserves his big move. As difficult a character as he may be, nobody can blame him for that.
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Sykes has had an excellent campaign, registering nearly double the number of league goal involvements (13) than he had in the previous two-and-a-half seasons combined with Oxford (7).
His end product has still left something to be desired, and his rates of scoring have certainly declined in the second half of the season. He has also shown a curious inability to score and assist at the same time.
Sykes' goal involvements per 90 (0.31) is the seventh best of all Oxford players to have played more than 20 games this season, and the second best of midfielders (if you can class him as that, which for the purposes of this we are).
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| Minimum 20 appearances |
He may not consistently score at great rates, but he has shown himself to be good at getting in good positions, with the sixth most shots per 90 of all Oxford players to have played over 20 matches this season.
He has also developed his off-ball movement and has scored several goals from being in the right place at the right time.
His 5 shots in the six-yard box are the joint second most (with Sam Long, strangely) in this Oxford team, with only Matty Taylor (13) registering more poachers efforts.
In total, he has registered the third most open-play shots of all Oxford players this season (58).
His creativity is an integral part of Oxford's attacking play, too, and he has particularly improved on his ball carrying abilities this season.
According to Opta, Mark Sykes has averaged the 8th most carries per 90 (progressing the ball at least five metres) in League One this season, and he is the joint third most of all midfielders for that metric.
This trait is key to moving Oxford up the field and allows United to transition quickly, with his carry for United's opener away at Wigan particularly springing to mind.
Sykes' averages the sixth highest carry distance (12.4 metres), which is the distance a player moves the ball per carry, and indicates that he is adept at getting Oxford moving up the pitch.
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| League One 2021-22, Minimum 900 league minutes |
These have brought some joy to Oxford, as well, with Sykes having created 42 chances and made 4 assists from his carries, the latter of which is the joint second most in League One.
That Sykes has not yet scored from any of these carries indicates a lack of end product which still haunts his game and has prohibited him becoming a top League One player.
Still. his carry stats show his valuable ability to progress the ball upfield from deep areas, particularly when he plays in midfield, allowing him to create chances out of nothing.
His 2.1 dribbles per 90, meanwhile, is behind only Nathan Holland (2.4) and Billy Bodin (2.6) in this Oxford team and show his technical ability which could suit playing at a higher level.
Sykes' on ball ability is not yet the finished product, though, as shown by his tendency to lose the ball, with his 3.5 possession losses per 90 among the highest in this Oxford team.
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| Minimum 15 appearances |
This is a by-product of the confidence Sykes plays with, and has been of constant frustration during his time at the club.
Sykes also needs to work on the accuracy of his final ball, with just 1.1 key passes per 90 ranking him a fairly average ninth of all Oxford players to have played over 15 matches.
His 75.1% passing accuracy leaves him tenth in the Oxford squad and well behind the likes of McGuane (86.5%), Whyte (83.7%), Brannagan (82.2%), Holland (78.4%) and Henry (78.1%), who have all played in similar positions to Sykes throughout this season.
This perhaps illustrates the eternal flittering nature of Sykes and his inability to stamp his authority for a full 90 minutes.
When Sykes gets on the ball, though, he makes things happen, an even more commendable trait given the number of positions he has played this season.
According to Transfermarkt, Mark Sykes has played in six different positions this season, and he has worked hard and generally played well wherever he was asked to go.
This will be viewed as a valuable trait by clubs further up the pyramid in an era where teams are still running short of players and funds following the pandemic.
Whoscored.com provides ratings for the EFL to determine Team of the Weeks and other awards and according to their data, Mark Sykes comes out as the sixth best Oxford player this season with an average rating of 6.92 (minimum 15 appearances) and has performed relatively consistently across all his positions.
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| Mark Sykes average Whoscored.com ratings per position |
Sykes still has a long way to go if he is to reach a truly high level, with getting more goal involvements the major stepping stone.
Oxford fans who have watched his inconsistencies over the past three-and-a-half years may justifiably argue he will never reach those heights.
But after what has been a mightily impressive season, he deserves a chance at a club he views as having more potential than Oxford.
There was never the feeling Sykes bought into Robinson's philosophy in a way which someone like Brannagan did, but this season he has not shown that out on the pitch.
Sykes has worked hard and come good in big moments for Oxford.
If this is enough to convince 'bigger' clubs to move for Sykes, then he deserves his big break, and nobody should blame him for that.
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