West Ham defender Reece Oxford has completed a loan move to Augsburg which will see him head to the Bundesliga for the remainder of the 2018-19 season.
Terms of the loan for the 20-year-old England youth international were not disclosed.
Oxford has not featured for West Ham in the Premier League this season, though he has suited up for the London club in the top flight eight times in years past.
It will be Oxford’s second time in the Bundesliga, having gone on loan to Borussia Monchengladbach for the second half of the 2017-18 season and featuring in seven league matches for the club.
Oxford also has previously spent time on loan with Championship club Reading.
“The Bundesliga is a very special league,” Oxford said in a statement. “I learnt that during my time with Borussia Monchengladbach. I’m therefore looking forward to playing with Augsburg and get more Bundesliga games under my belt.
“I want to help and try to get as many points as possible during the coming weeks and hopefully have something great to celebrate at the end of the season.”
The defender joins an Augsburg side who are looking to ensure their top-flight status for next season.
The club sit 15th in the Bundesliga table, just one point above Stuttgart in the relegation playoff. Augsburg are only four points ahead of Hannover and Nurnberg in the automatic relegation places at the bottom of the Bundesliga.
Oxford continues a trend of Premier League youth players looking to Germany for first-team opportunities.
Jadon Sancho has become a trendsetter thanks to his bright campaigns with Borussia Dortmund, with the likes of Arsenal’s Reiss Nelson heading to Hoffenheim on loan this season, where he has scored six goals in the German top flight.
Nelson’s Arsenal team-mate Emile Smith-Rowe also completed a deadline day move to RB Leipzig on loan for the remainder of the season.
In addition, Rabbi Matondo completed a £10 million ($13m) permanent move to Schalke from Manchester City before the close of the January transfer window, while Chelsea’s Callum Hudson-Odoi reportedly remains hopeful of a Bayern Munich move, though the Blues rejected his transfer request.
