Finally, Marselino Ferdinand Debuted At Oxford United

Marselino Ferdinand was given the opportunity to debut at Oxford United in the FA Cup (Instagram/@oufcofficial).

JAKARTA - Marselino Ferdinand has finally made his debut at Oxford United since signing on August 19, 2024.

The Indonesian National Team player's debut came when Oxford United was beaten by League One team, Exeter City, with a score of 1-3 in the FA Cup Third Round on Saturday, January 11, 2025.

Marselino came off the bench in the 89th minute to replace Siriki Dembele after the Championship club played with 10 players after Tyler Goodrham was shown a red card in the 81st minute.

"Marselino made his Oxford United debut at the FA Cup. Congratulations, Lino," wrote the club's Instagram account.

Oxford United took the lead through Matt Phillips in the 14th minute. However, two goals in the first half of Mitchell's geometry and one goal in the second half by Vincent Harper made Exeter City advance to the fourth round of the FA Cup.

Gary Rowett, head coach of Oxford United, made changes, with only three starters in the final game at Preston North End in the early line-up.

Matt Ingram was the goalkeeper, while Hide ter Avest and Jordantailey joined Sam Long and Greg Leigh on the back.

How dare you and Josh McEachran enter midfield with Idris El Mizouni, Phillips, and Siriki Dembele, to support the sole striker Dane Scarlett.

Oxford United had their first chance in the early minutes when Phillips passed the ball to Dembele.

He fired a wide pass at him whose shot was parried with Joe Whitworth's feet.

The next chance came to Scarlett after Dembele found her in an empty space on the edge of the area, but her shot went wide.

The opener, in the 14th minute, was a classic counter-attack after Exeter's corner kick. Dembele broke through and played a perfect pass to Scarlett's line on the right.

His cross was met by Phillips who opened the first shot to outwit Whitworth.

Exeter almost responded quickly when Caleb Watts crossed a cross and Oxford defender Sam Long's header turned it into the post before goalkeeper Matthew Ingram brushed it off.

The equalizer's goal also came from a cross from the left flank. Harper sent a pass to Mitchell who then fired a spectacular volley past Ingram in the 23rd minute.

With five minutes remaining before the break, Oxford United trailed for the first time under Rowett.

Mitchell made another break, firing a shot into the lower corner after the ball fell on him from Watts' cross into the penalty area.

Exeter's third goal came in the middle of the game, right after Oxford United made double changes, involving new player Alex Matos who made his debut.

As Exeter broke free of pressure, Harper fired a shot from the edge of the penalty area to give Oxford United a deeper wound.

Oxford United's job became much more difficult with 10 minutes remaining when Goodrham received a straight red card for reply after being handed down by Jake Richards.

There is still time for another Oxford debut, namely Indonesian National Team player, Marselino Ferdinand, given the last few minutes to show what he can do.

However, despite the seven-minute addition to injury time, the League One Exeter City team will enter the draw for the next round.

Then, Oxford will return to appear on Wednesday for the Championship match against Plymouth Argyle in a rescheduled match.

Meanwhile, Marselino's overseas work has not gone up. Since the first time leaving the country on January 31, 2023 to join KMSK Debze (Challenger Pro League / second level Belgium), there are still few playing minutes.

Last season, the 20-year-old only packed three six appearances with a total of 17 minutes.

Getting a debut at Oxford United is a breath of fresh air. Marselino certainly hopes that his debut in Championship will also come soon.

Lineup Of Players

Oxford United: Ingram, Long, McEachran (Goodrham 64'), Phillips (Placheta 69'), Marijuana, El Mizouni (Matos 64'), Leigh, Dembele (Ferdinan 89'), ter Avest (Kioso 70'), kamiley, Scarlett