Highly-rated youngster adds to attacking options.

Oxford City Football Club are delighted to announce the arrival of Aidan Elliott-Wheeler on a youth loan from Sky Bet Championship side Oxford United.

The 18-year-old midfielder joins on the back of a successful season last year after fruitful loan spells with Banbury United and Hemel Hempstead Town in step two of non-league.

Capable of playing across the front line or as a wing-back, Elliott-Wheeler adds both quality and versatility to Sam Cox’s squad and is eligible for Saturday’s VNLN clash with Darlington at Court Place Farm.

After signing on loan, Elliott-Wheeler said: “I’m excited to sign,”

“Seeing what the club have done in pre-season was a big factor in coming here. I can’t wait to get going.

“As soon as I came off the pitch in the friendly [vs Oxford United] I said that I really liked the way they play and when Coxy [Sam Cox] spoke to me, I said to him that I’d be happy to come here because of the way we’ll play.

“I did have other loan offers but this was the one that stood out most. I feel like I’ve definitely made the right choice.

“I’m really excited to be involved on Saturday and hopefully we can get a positive result.”

Oxford City Manager Sam Cox added: “Aidan’s someone that I’ve been a fan of for a long time.

“We’ve been monitoring him throughout pre-season and I’ve wanted this to get the deal done for a while.

“I was made aware of him before our pre-season friendly with Oxford United and I thought he was excellent against us. I spoke to him after the final whistle as well.

“He’s got ambitions to be a Championship and Premier League player, so hopefully we can aid his development.

“I think he’ll add huge value in attacking areas for us and he’s versatile as well. He can play across the forward line, in the pocket or even as a wing-back so he adds versatility to our already competent squad.”

A local lad from Kidlington, Elliott-Wheeler signed his first professional contract with the U’s during the summer and will now continue his development at Court Place Farm.

Despite his age, Elliott-Wheeler will be one of the more experienced members of the squad when it comes to playing in the National League North.

The midfielder became somewhat of a fans' favourite with Banbury United in two separate loan spells at the Spencer Stadium in the past two seasons.

Towards the end of the 2023/24 season he moved across the north/south divide to join Hemel Hempstead in NLS, and proved to be a key cog in the squad to help the Tudors beat the drop.

The midfielder was also a key part of the Oxford United youth side that made history in the FA Youth Cup.

The young Us’s reached the Quarter-Final stage of the competition (the furthest they’ve reached in their history) before they were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City.

Now, Elliott-Wheeler joins a squad with an array of attacking talent that can only bolster Sam Cox’s options.

Welcome to Oxford City, Aidan!