Malachi Napa hoping to repay faith shown in him by Oxford United boss Karl Robinson

The 18-year-old has received a major confidence boost from the new U’s boss, who has praised him publicly and in private since taking charge last week.

Napa was handed his first senior start for the side in Robinson’s first game in charge, Sunday’s 3-0 defeat at Portsmouth, and is likely to keep the shirt for Scunthorpe United’s visit this afternoon.

While the young attacker knows the faith needs to be repaid with an end product, the backing has made an impact.

He said: “I’m really happy the gaffer has belief in me.

“I’ve always said from the start that I would work hard and the opportunities will come.

“The confidence the manager gives you is very respectful – you’ve got to take that on and believe in yourself.

“He said to me I should believe in my talent, so I need to show what I’ve got to win games.

“Any player could get carried away by hearing you’ve played well and everyone’s bigging you up.

“It’s easy to get swayed, so I do try to keep my head down.

“It’s all about whether you understand that, can take the pressure and use it to make you a better player.”

The new-found belief almost reaped instant dividends at Fratton Park, when he came so close to netting an equaliser after collecting a pass on the edge of the penalty area.

Napa admitted in the past he would have looked for an easy option, but is now aiming to open his U’s goalscoring account over the Easter weekend.

He said: “In other circumstances in games I would have passed when I could have shot.

“I thought it had gone in, but the keeper made a good save. I was very gutted.

“You want to win games and every player needs to produce something.

“You can’t just keep playing in those (attacking) positions and expect to keep your role.

“I am looking towards getting some goals and assists – it’s very important for a winger and a striker.

“It’s something that will come. This is the weekend I can showcase myself and the team.”