WHILE the majority of Oxford United fans will be keeping an eye out for potential signings this summer, one player set to return to the club is Stuart Findlay.

The 28-year-old centre back spent the season on loan at Kilmarnock, helping the side to fourth place in the Scottish Premiership and a spot in next season’s Europa League second qualifying round.

Findlay, who joined the U’s in July 2022, has got another two years on his United contract.

We spoke to Kilmarnock reporter Callum Carson to get the lowdown on how Findlay got on this season.

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How has Findlay performed for Kilmarnock this season?

He's been steady and consistently good without necessarily being outstanding. A 7/10 type player every week, which is never to be sniffed at. Lewis Mayo has probably had most of the plaudits from the defence but as a whole unit, they’ve been impressive, committed very few errors over the course of the season and a huge part as to why Kilmarnock finished fourth and qualified for Europe – and Findlay was an integral part of that having started 37 of the 38 league games.

Do you think Kilmarnock will look to bring him back, either on loan again or on a permanent basis?

Absolutely. Qualifying for Europe perhaps makes a permanent deal more likely given there’s more money in the pot now, but whether loan or permanent, manager Derek McInnes has already stated that he’d be keen on Findlay remaining a Kilmarnock player. Oxford being promoted probably means he falls even further down the pecking order there, which would make a move more likely.

Oxford Mail:

What has Findlay said about his future?

He’s had four separate spells at Kilmarnock and clearly has a special affinity for the club. He was a Kilmarnock player when he won his sole Scotland cap too. He’s been in the game long enough to know that it’s something out of his own hands given he’s contracted to Oxford, but he’s publicly said he’d ‘never, ever turn my nose up’ at a possible return to Rugby Park.

Could other clubs rival Kilmarnock for his signature?

In the Scottish market, it’s probably unlikely. He’s not going to attract a move to Rangers or Celtic, and Kilmarnock are probably just as capable of offering as decent a wage as most other clubs, and given his history with the club he’d probably be willing to sacrifice a bit financially anyway to sign with Killie. He’s proven himself to be a very good Scottish Premiership defender, so if he’s available there will certainly be interest, but I can’t see him signing for another Scottish club other than Kilmarnock unless Oxford get an offer that just blows everything else out of the water.