Matthew Taylor (footballer)
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| Matthew Taylor | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Matthew John Taylor | |
| Date of birth | November 27, 1981 (age 25) | |
| Place of birth | Oxford, England | |
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | |
| Nickname | Super Matt | |
| Playing position | Left Back, Left Midfielder | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Portsmouth | |
| Number | 14 | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1999-2002 2002- |
Luton Town Portsmouth |
129 (16) 156 (19) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Matthew John "Matty" Taylor (born November 27, 1981 in Oxford, England) is an English football player. He currently plays for Portsmouth F.C. as a left-sided defender and/or attacking midfielder.
Contents |
[edit] Career
Taylor grew up in Abingdon, near Oxford, and was a keen schools and boys football player, winning the Vale of the White Horse Schools Cup in 1995 at under 13 level, and reaching the final of the Oxfordshire County Schools Cup in the same year, with John Mason School. He was a boyhood Tottenham supporter, which has no doubt helped to fuel transfer speculation linking him with a move to White Hart Lane.
He began his career at Luton Town F.C., making his debut at the beginning of the 1999/2000 season. He soon made the left wing-back slot his own and won the Young Player of the Year award in his first ever season as a professional.
His success at Luton came after an initial trial at his local side, Oxford United, who told a young Matthew that due his to his thick set build he was 'too fat' and 'only good enough to go in goal' - a decision they no doubt regret.
His impressive displays led to interest from Premiership clubs and he appeared to be on the verge of signing for Tottenham but he instead decided to sign for Portsmouth, who at the time were a mediocre First Division side. The fee was eventually decided at a tribunal with Pompey paying Luton £750,000.
Usually playing as a left wing-back in a 3-5-2 formation, his speedy breaks down the left flank in support of the attack were a feature of Portsmouth's play as they lifted the First Division (now Football League Championship) crown in May 2003, earning him the chance to show his skills in the Premiership. As well as being a regular in the team during the season he also scored seven crucial goals in the League.
An injury picked up in the later stages of the previous season meant that Taylor was unavailable for the start of Portsmouth's first Premiership season. After returning to fitness Taylor struggled to win his place in the side back due to the side's good early season form and Harry Redknapp's switch to the 4-4-2 formation. Some Pompey fans believe that Taylor never regained the explosive pace he had prior to his injury. Taylor eventually won a place in the Pompey team at left back, where he was a regular in the second half of the 2003/04 season and appeared to be regaining form. However, the summer signing of David Unsworth from Everton meant that he started the 2004/05 season out of the starting XI but he again won his place back for the second half of the season with Unsworth failing to impress the new Portsmouth management.
New manager Alain Perrin utilised Taylor as a left midfielder during the 2005/2006 season, a position many fans believed suited him better than the restrictive full back role. When Harry Redknapp returned, Taylor initially retained his attacking role but the arrival of Andres D'Alessandro on loan and Redknapp's disapproval of Perrin's left-back Gregory Vignal meant that Taylor returned to full-back for the latter stages of the season. The 2005/06 campaign could be considered his first full Premiership season. In all he played 34 league games, scoring six goals. Two of these were crucial penalties; one in the last minute against Sunderland to secure a 2-1 win, and another in an away game at Wigan Athletic to clinch another 2-1 win and survival from relegation.
His good form has brought alleged interest from Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham, but he signed a long term contract with Portsmouth in July 2006. In the 2006/07 season Taylor has been a regular in the Portsmouth side on the left of midfield. Despite the team's good form, it took until mid-November for him to score his first league goal in a game against Aston Villa. He then added a second from the penalty spot in the same match before going on to score spectacular volleys in the next two games against Everton and Arsenal. This excellent form has been well received by the England manager Steve McClaren and many people are tipping him for the England call up but he appears to have Joe Cole, Stewart Downing, Kieran Richardson and Gareth Barry ahead of him in the pecking order. After Matthew's spectacular displays in the first half of the 2006/2007 season, Martin Jol of Tottenham Hotspur, Martin O'Neill of Aston Villa and David Moyes of Everton had allegedly had an interest in him.
[edit] Notable Goals
Taylor is well known for scoring spectacular goals from long range. His first being a lob from just inside the oppositions half at home to Cambridge United FC in a crucial relegation battle for Luton Town FC during 2000/01. In the 2002-3 season, he scored near-identical goals from outside the penalty area with his weaker right foot at promotion rivals Nottingham Forest and Leicester.
His equaliser in the FA Cup tie at Anfield is also fondly remembered by the Pompey fans, although more for the celebration where he ran the length of the pitch to celebrate with the supporters after a forceful right-footed finish at the Kop End. This celebration was repeated when he scored a penalty at Wigan's JJB Stadium, the goal which saved Portsmouth from relegation back to the second tier of English football.
On 29 October 2005, he scored from fully 40 yards at Sunderland's Stadium Of Light, winning the BBC Goal of the Month. Spotting the goalkeeper off his line Taylor hit a dipping left footed half-volley over his head and into the back of the net. Portsmouth had been trailing Sunderland 1-0 in the crucial "6 pointer" but Taylor inspired a second half comeback with two goals and two assists in a 4-1 victory. He proved this goal was not a fluke by scoring a similar, but more difficult technically, 45-yard volley against Everton on December 9, 2006 at Fratton Park. Former Pompey captain Paul Merson described it as the greatest goal he had ever seen. In Pompey's next match he scored another left-footed dipping volley, this time from the angle of the penalty area, to earn a 2-2 draw against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
[edit] Personal Life
Taylor is married [1].
The Oxford-born player, his wife Hannah and 16-month-old daughter Georgia live in Wantage, Oxfordshire, but are attempting to buy a second home closer to Portsmouth. The couple met while Hannah was at university, studying for a degree in business management.[2]
[edit] External links
- BBC profile
- Matthew Taylor career stats at Soccerbase
- 45-yard volley against Everton, December 9 2006.
- 40-yard goal vs. Sunderland, October 29, 2005
| Portsmouth F.C. - Current Squad |
|---|
|
1 James | 2 Primus | 3 Stefanović | 4 Johnson | 5 O'Brien | 6 Traoré | 9 Todorov | 10 Lauren | 11 Pamarot | 14 Taylor | 15 Ashdown | 19 Kranjčar | 21 Songo'o | 22 Hughes | 23 Campbell | 25 Benjani | 26 O'Neil | 27 Kanu | 28 Davis | 29 Douala | 30 Pedro Mendes | 32 LuaLua | 34 Mvuemba | 35 Jordan | Manager: Redknapp |
