Marcus Browne has departed Middlesbrough to return to Oxford United for an undisclosed fee.
Browne first spent 2018-19 season on loan at Oxford whilst registered to West Ham where he impressed with nine goals in 44 appearances, before the Hammers sold him to Middlesbrough in July 2019.
Browne struggled for game time during the first half of 2019-20 season on Teesside and was consequently sent on loan to Oxford in second half of that season, where he went on to score five goals in 16 appearances.
Since returning to Boro last season, Browne again failed to settle with only two goals in eight appearances before a knee injury curtailed his season early in January 2021, with the 24 year-old still yet to make a return from the injury.
Boro have now accepted an undisclosed transfer fee from Oxford for Browne with the midfielder
Paying tribute to Boro for their efforts to work with him in his recovery, Browne said: “It’s been a tough 12 months, but I’d like to thank the staff at Middlesbrough for all their support and hard work, and also say a big thank you to the fans, who have been brilliant with me the whole time.
“The supporters and the people around me kept me going through some very tough times, and they’re the reason that I’m able to look to the future now and be positive about what’s ahead.”
As he now returns to the Us, Browne added that he is “looking forward” to returning to the Kassam Stadium and playing regular football again.
In total, Browne scored just twice in 22 appearances for Boro.
Explaining his decision to re-join Oxford in depth to oufc.co.uk, Browne said: “They did come into my thinking because they were brilliant with me when I was here before.
“I was made to feel so welcome and I enjoyed playing football here so with the team doing so well and the whole club moving forward it was an easy choice to make.
“This time it’s permanent instead of a loan but that doesn’t change anything really: I am still going to go out there and give it everything and do my best to help the team in any way I can.”
Oxford manager, Karl Robinson meanwhile described Browne as “a dangerous” player when he is at his best and insisted that the ex Hammer will be a player who “opens up so many options for us and he is so hungry to succeed and do well for this club.”
Robinson also hopes that Browne will be crucial to their League One Play-Offs hopes this season as well as beyond as he concluded: “He will hopefully have a big part to play this season but he has signed a long-term deal and that’s what we are signing: an excellent footballer with his best years in front of him.”
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