KARL Robinson admitted his Oxford United substitutions may have looked strange at Highbury, but there were reasons behind them.

The head coach came in for some criticism from supporters for the decisions as they lost 2-1 at Fleetwood Town.

While Jamie Hanson was a

like-for-like replacement for Alex Gorrin, the other two changes needed explanation.

Sam Long came on for a tiring Shandon Baptiste, prompting a reshuffle which saw Chris Cadden moved to a more attacking role.

That lasted just eight minutes, with Tariqe Fosu replacing the Scot after Fleetwood’s second goal.

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It turned out Cadden had been managing a tight hamstring through the game, while Fosu was only cleared to play a handful of minutes on his return from injury.

And when it came to the other attacking options on the bench, Robinson did not believe they would help in that situation.

He said: “We had Hally (Rob Hall), but was that a Hally game where you’re breaking from deep?

“Dan (Agyei) blew his socks out on Tuesday and was still feeling it as well.

“With half an hour to go you know Shandon’s got nothing in his legs.

“You know you can’t put Tariqe on for more than ten minutes, because you don’t want to lose him for another three or four weeks.

“There are so many different things when you make substitutions you have to keep so many things in mind.

“It’s only us that know the players 100 per cent.

“Some of the decisions might have looked peculiar, but there were reasons behind it and clarity behind it.”