Speaking to the Oxford Mail, Oxford United manager Karl Robinson has said that they would like to bring Derby County midfielder George Thorne back on loan for the rest of the season, but he insisted that a deal would have to be on their terms and not Derby’s.
In the summer transfer window, Derby County allowed midfielder George Thorne to head out on loan for the first half of the season, signing for League One side Oxford United. However, in just his third appearance for the club, Thorne was substituted off in the first half of their 4-0 Carabao Cup win over West Ham, suffering a dislocated shoulder.
The injury has left Thorne on the sidelines until now, and he is closing in on his return to full fitness. His loan deal with Oxford United has come to an end, but manager Karl Robinson has said that he would like to bring Thorne back to the club for the rest of the season to help Oxford’s promotion push.
“If it’s a minimal cost one then he’s a tremendous person to have around the building,” said Robinson.
“He’s one of the focal points of the squad, one of the jovial, experienced ones. He’s a top player, I think everyone at the club saw in the two games he played he was so unlucky.
“We know it works for him geographically and if Derby want to work with us it would be something we’d probably do, but it would have to be on our terms, rather than theirs. We have footed the bill while he’s been injured. It’s nobody’s fault but we’ll have to wait and see.”
Throughout his career, Thorne, 27, has been plagued with injury problems, limiting his game time and hampering his development at Derby County. It will be interesting to see if Derby are willing to send Thorne out on loan once again and if the two clubs can agree to a deal.
