OXFORD United are on alert to prevent another familiar face causing them damage as they look to halt a sticky spell at Bury this evening.

Back-to-back defeats to Blackpool and Walsall have dented the early-season momentum.

The decisive goal in Saturday’s defeat to the Saddlers came via Tyler Roberts, who was on loan at United last season.

Bury also have a forward who will be looking to haunt his old side, in the form of Chris Maguire.

The Scot was the U’s top-scorer last season and he netted two free-kicks to help Michael Appleton’s side to a 3-2 win in this fixture.

Maguire has yet to score for the Shakers, but United goalkeeper Simon Eastwood knows he must be watched carefully.

He said: “Mags is well-known for how good he is from dead-ball situations, so we don’t want to be doing stuff like that.

“His delivery from corners and free-kicks will be a threat, so I’m sure it’s something we’ll talk about before the game.”

Maguire was among a host of eye-catching signings made by Bury boss Lee Clark during the summer.

But the overhauled squad have yet to live up to their pre-season billing of dark horses for promotion.

Bury have not won since the opening day of the season, slipping into the bottom four in Sky Bet League One.

United had a similar level of upheaval going into the campaign, but despite the defeats they are still in the top half of the table.

Boss Pep Clotet feels Bury’s struggles show his side’s results in a different light.

He said: “I think our start is better than it looks, because when you bring in a lot of new players it takes time to gel.

“We managed to be very clear with the way we’re playing and make huge steps forward.

“We’ve got a lot of points under our belt and that’s why it doesn’t make me worry now that we’ve had a setback.

“Now we have a fantastic opportunity to put everything behind us and get back on the right track.”