DES Buckingham has one message for the Oxford United fans travelling to Bristol City tomorrow – enjoy the game and get behind the team.

United’s trip to the Robins will have been one of the games most supporters initially scanned for when the Sky Bet Championship fixtures were released at the end of June.

The U’s head to Ashton Gate for a reunion with former head coach Liam Manning, who left United for the Robins in November last year, having only took over the U’s in March.

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The atmosphere tomorrow afternoon is set be fiery, and United boss Buckingham wants the fans to turn that into a positive.

His message to the U’s supporters was to ‘go and enjoy themselves, get behind us and back us’.

Buckingham added: “What’s done is done. People make decisions, and people won’t always be aware of what those decisions are.

“All I can say is that it opened up an opportunity for me to come back to this club, and for us to go on and get promoted and be where we are right now, which is seventh in the Championship, playing some really good football.

“We had a wonderful end to the season at Wembley, and that wouldn’t have been possible without the old manager moving on.”

On the challenge that United face against the Robins, Buckingham said: “Liam’s got a very clear way of playing, but he’s also able to do other things. We’ve seen that both when he took over and last season, and what he’s done this year.

“We have to be prepared for whether he continues to do the same thing, or maybe changes things.

“We’ll prepare as well as we can, but what we’ve always said is we’ve got a way we want to do things, whether that’s home or away, or league or cup.

“We’ll try and do that at Bristol at the weekend, and if we focus on ourselves, concentrate on what’s important, which is what our game plan will be and how to implement it, we’ll put ourselves in the best position to have a good day there.”

He added: “We’re looking to carry on the performances that have got us the points we’ve got so far.

“We’re sitting seventh in the league, and I think we’ve shown a really good account of ourselves in the five league games.

“The home games have been pleasing because we’ve been able to pick up maximum points, and we’re coming off the back of two good wins.

“We want to go put on a good account of ourselves again, and the ultimate aim is try and go there, and win the game.

“If we can come away with that, it would be great, but a draw minimum to come away with.”