SAM Long has agreed a new two-year contract at Oxford United.

The defender’s existing deal expired at the end of the month, but he has now committed his immediate future to stay with Karl Robinson’s side.

Long, from Bicester, is the longest-serving member of the squad, having joined the club as an eight-year-old.

Now 25, the deal will take him to almost two decades at United.

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And given the uncertainty over the future as football is impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, securing the new deal is a weight off his mind.

He said: "Massively, there's such a big pool of players out of contract this year and I've been in negotiations with Oxford for a while now.

"I'm just really glad to get it over the line and have a bit of security for myself.

"Hopefully we can kick on now and get promoted." 

His senior debut came in April 2013 and has now made 81 appearances under five different U’s permanent and caretaker managers.

The majority have come in the last two seasons, when Long has made big strides having put injury issues behind him.