DES Buckingham regards deadline day loan signing Ben Nelson as one of the best young centre backs in English football.

The 20-year-old arrived on a season-long loan from Leicester City, with Oxford United reportedly beating interest from fellow Sky Bet Championship sides Bristol City, Portsmouth and Sunderland to land Nelson.

The centre half was United’s main target in the position during the summer transfer window, and head coach Buckingham is delighted to get his man.

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Asked about bringing in a centre back this summer, Buckingham responded: “It’s one we’ve been after for a long time.

“We know we need some cover in there, so to be able to bring, not a just a player in, but a player that we’ve chased for a long, long time.

“He can play the way we want to play, he’s a very good young prospect, not just for his club, but for the country.

“More importantly, it gives us a good bit of depth and quality in that space.”

Nelson is on international duty having been named in England’s ‘Elite League’ squad, formerly the Under-20s.

England face Turkey in Istanbul on Friday, before a home game at Stockport County’s Edgeley Park on September 10.