The Belfast man signed with the club in 2019.
Irish midfielder Mark Sykes has signed a new deal with Oxford United keeping him at the club until 2022. The Belfast man had an option in his contract to extend his contract for a further year which manager Karl Robinson duly activated. Spanish midfielder Alex Gorrin also had his contract extended.
“It didn’t take too long to make that decision because they are good players, they both love playing for the club and we think there is more to come from both of them,” said manager Karl Robinson on the deals.
“We are building for the future here and both of them fit the bill really well; good players with great attitudes and lot of potential, so we are really happy to have them here for at least one more year and hopefully longer.”
“I’m settled here, love living in the area and the club has given me the opportunity to really show what I can do,” stated Mark Sykes.
“I’ll always be grateful that they took a chance on bringing me over here and hopefully I can repay that faith by playing a part in the last couple of games and getting us where we all want to be.”
Sykes signed for Oxford United back in 2019 from NIFL Premiership side Glenavon. He came through the club’s youth system and made 117 league appearances over the span of 6 years before departing.
Since joining Oxford, Sykes has become a first-team regular, making 30 League One appearances this season.
He also played for Northern Ireland from u18 to u21 level and was included in a couple of senior squads, however he never played in a game for the country.
Because of this, he was still eligible for the Republic of Ireland and in a controversial move in August last year, he switched allegiance to the Republic.
“The Republic of Ireland are the team I have always dreamed of playing for and I have to try my best to achieve that,” explained Sykes regarding his decision.
The 23-year-old has yet to appear in a Republic of Ireland squad, but that could change very soon if he keeps progressing as he is.
𝙈𝙖𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤 💫@Sykesy_14‘s highlights as he extends his deal with the U’s 🙌#OUFC | #COYY pic.twitter.com/l864kprJwX
— Oxford United FC (@OUFCOfficial) APRIL 27, 2021
