Reece Oxford is no longer a player Manuel Pellegrini can call upon having joined FC Augsburg on loan for the remainder of the season, Sky Sports News have confirmed.
Reports had been surfacing for months questioning the defender’s future in East London, especially when the Sunday Times quoted Oxford back in November as saying he would need to leave in January if Pellegrini did not blood him into his squad.
That situation has not changed in the months in between, and now the 20-year-old has secured a return to the Bundesliga, this time with Augsburg.
Oxford knows the German top-tier well having spent last season with Borussia Monchengladbach, making eight appearances, where his performances impressed Dieter-Klaus Hecking enough to consider approaching the Hammers over a permanent move.
No official offer came in from Monchengladbach, however, and instead Nottingham Forest and Eintracht Frankfurt emerged as potential suitors in January, with the Daily Mail suggesting they would rival each other with £8million bids.
Sky Sports News have today confirmed that the defender, who can play in a holding midfield role, did discuss moves with Frankfurt and Forest, but instead will join Augsburg on loan.
Oxford has not featured for West Ham in more than a year, having last laced up his boots against Crystal Palace on January 30, 2018, for all of four minutes.
