FA Cup: Oxford avoid upset against MK Dons as Bloomfield watched on

Oxford United had to come from behind and overcome penalties to reach the FA Cup fourth round against a spirited MK Dons.

Newly appointed head coach Matt Bloomfield watched on as the Championship fell behind, but with the scoreline 1-1 after extra time, Oxford triumphed 4-3 on penalties.

It looked like the U’s poor league form was haunting them after Aaron Collins guided Connor Lemonheigh-Evans’ delivery into the back of the net from close range.

But the visitors struck back seven minutes after the break, with Will Lankshear finding the equaliser, though neither team could find a second goal.

In the shootout, United scored all four of the penalties they took, with MK Dons falling at the final hurdle as Jonathan Leko missed, putting them on the back foot before Matt Ingram emerged as the hero by keeping out Lemonheigh-Evans’ attempt.

Into the next round!

#OUFC | FT: 1 – 1 P: 3 – 4 pic.twitter.com/KEM0ygcdTB

— Oxford United (@OUFCOfficial) January 9, 2026

There was a shock elsewhere, though, as League One Wigan Athletic edged to a 1-0 win over Preston North End at Deepdale.

Preston are chasing a promotion spot in the Championship but came unstuck on Friday as they had 12 shots without any success.

Teenager Harrison Bettoni netted the winner in the 75th minute, becoming the youngest player to score in the competition this season from the first round onwards (18 years, 169 days).

Port Vale are also through to the fourth round for the first time since 2013-14, after a 1-0 win over Fleetwood Town.

Jonathan Brady made a winning start to life in the dugout, thanks to Jordan Shipley’s goal in first-half stoppage time.

Data Debrief: Oxford end long wait for fourth round

Not since 2019-20 had Oxford made it past the third round of the FA Cup, but they just about scraped through.

They had 18 shots to MK Dons’ 13, but the hosts produced 2.25 expected goals (xG), with goalscorer Collins contributing 1.79 to that total, more than Oxford (1.4 xG) managed as a team.

And it was a sorry day for MK Dons manager Paul Warne, who has now been eliminated in seven of his eight FA Cup third-round ties.