Steven Taylor

[OTF 7297]

I think the problem with Saylor is that he'll lose his cool and launch into a tackle and stupidly get sent off. I think he's calming down, a lot, but there's still that will to win that sometimes leads him down daft avenues.

 

Like the classic handballs in the box. Good for a chuckle a few years later though...

[loonyTOON 10]

They haven't paid the bonuses have they? Just it's all been agreed before the season started

[jaythesouthernmag 0]

Our best CB pairing in a while

[JawD 99]

He's doing well atm but I think he plays much better along side someone like Colo. If you put him alongside someone like Williamson I think his game drops. Prone to the odd senseless blunder but canny atm and lets be honest, we aint exactly blessed in that position currently. I rate Colo > Taylor > Williamson

 

I've always thought Steven Taylor is a potential top class central defender.

 

He needs to play in a team that is more successful, alongside better players, to improve.

 

People knock him for his "pointing" etc, whatever that is supposed to mean. Is it just criticising for the sake of it, because they think someone else raises a point and they feel they need to agree with it ?

 

My view of that, is you need leaders at the back, I don't see any problem whatsoever in pointing and directing. In fact, its a big plus.

 

He's no ball playing defender, but he's a solid stopper physical player who stands up when the going gets tough. It depends what you want from your central defenders.

 

Williamson can't lace his boots.

 

If playing alongside Colocinni is good for him, it only re-inforces the view that playing alongside better teams and players with more technical ability is good for him, to be correct.

 

The point being that a "ball playing defender" while advantageous in some circumstances, does not change the fact that a defenders first priority is to defend, and Steven Taylor is a natural defender, and a hard physical one who can more than hold his own against quality strikers, especially in the premiership where it is a physical game.

 

Agree LM. While not the same level, Bramble always played better when with Woodgate. Was like having someone to think for him. Colo is more the ball player but Taylor is doing his main role which we need. Long may it continue.

[MrBass 2652]

They haven't paid the bonuses have they? Just it's all been agreed before the season started

 

I read it as they paid last seasons bonuses.

[ewerk 30633]

I'm guessing that Barton et al won't be getting their cheques in the post.

[Kid Dynamite 7034]

I think the problem with Saylor is that he'll lose his cool and launch into a tackle and stupidly get sent off. I think he's calming down, a lot, but there's still that will to win that sometimes leads him down daft avenues.

 

Except he hasn't been sent off since 2005? Did you just make that up by any chance

[LeazesMag 0]

I think the problem with Saylor is that he'll lose his cool and launch into a tackle and stupidly get sent off. I think he's calming down, a lot, but there's still that will to win that sometimes leads him down daft avenues.

 

Except he hasn't been sent off since 2005? Did you just make that up by any chance

 

and that was for a handball ie Villa and the spectacular "I've just been shot" iirc

[Holden McGroin 6600]

I think the problem with Saylor is that he'll lose his cool and launch into a tackle and stupidly get sent off. I think he's calming down, a lot, but there's still that will to win that sometimes leads him down daft avenues.

 

Except he hasn't been sent off since 2005? Did you just make that up by any chance

 

Aye, I laughed at that. 6 years without a sending off. Thats around half of an average footballers career.

[Holden McGroin 6600]

He's doing well atm but I think he plays much better along side someone like Colo. If you put him alongside someone like Williamson I think his game drops. Prone to the odd senseless blunder but canny atm and lets be honest, we aint exactly blessed in that position currently. I rate Colo > Taylor > Williamson

 

I've always thought Steven Taylor is a potential top class central defender.

 

He needs to play in a team that is more successful, alongside better players, to improve.

 

People knock him for his "pointing" etc, whatever that is supposed to mean. Is it just criticising for the sake of it, because they think someone else raises a point and they feel they need to agree with it ?

 

My view of that, is you need leaders at the back, I don't see any problem whatsoever in pointing and directing. In fact, its a big plus.

 

He's no ball playing defender, but he's a solid stopper physical player who stands up when the going gets tough. It depends what you want from your central defenders.

 

Williamson can't lace his boots.

 

If playing alongside Colocinni is good for him, it only re-inforces the view that playing alongside better teams and players with more technical ability is good for him, to be correct.

 

The point being that a "ball playing defender" while advantageous in some circumstances, does not change the fact that a defenders first priority is to defend, and Steven Taylor is a natural defender, and a hard physical one who can more than hold his own against quality strikers, especially in the premiership where it is a physical game.

 

Yep. I've been in the pro-Taylor camp so feel rather smug at his recent form. He'll no doubt make a mistake soon which will put him back in the shit category, in some people eyes. Every defender makes mistakes though. We can over analyze some of our own players sometimes (this isn't just directed at Taylor).

[Tooj 17]

He looks to have come on massively this season, especially playing alongside Colo.

 

Although, that doesn't excuse the fact he had been playing piss poor in the past, and people were coming out with excuse after excuse how it wasn't his fault that he hadn't developed as a player.

 

Hopefully his form can continue, as generally when he's been playing since the end of the relegation season he's kept on improving as a player.

 

Looks more mobile and less built as well.

[Dr Gloom 21943]

he's cut down on the feigning chest injury after committing a hand ball, which is a plus.

[manc-mag 1]

For me, I think with a Tiote in front of you, both your centre backs should look better, and with a Tiote in front of you and a Colo alongside you, your weaker centre half should still look decent.

 

That's not having a dig at Taylor as that's simply the way it should be-you're centre halves should have the protection of a combative CM pressurising/breaking down oppo attacks, rather than being the first line of defence. The top clubs always have it, sadly it's not normally the NUFC way as we prefer to let opponents run directly at our defence unhindered, which is why we're so appreciative of Cheick. The defence deserve that support so they can defend as a unit rather than having to break lines and go jumping into marauding attackers like sacrificial lambs.

 

I'll never be a Saylor fan, but he's doing a good job and it's not luck, he's capable given the context I've described above.

 

On Tiote, the addition of Cabaye playing more advanced looks promising. Tiote has to do one thing for me and thats harry and break up attacks, he shouldn't even look to make a forward pass as he is emphatically not a footballer, he's an athlete who can chase around all day and win possession. His completed pass record is fantastic but that's because most of them will be five yard lay offs once he's stolen the ball. Good, don't do anything else with it, when he tries I whince. If Cabaye is around to pick it up off him then I think the relationship should be naturally very complementary and I'm pretty excited about it, particularly as Cabaye's clearly looking to put in a shift too and not just stand around waiting for balls to break to him.

[Kevin S. Assilleekunt 1]

Cabaye is a better tackler than Tiote because he times his tackles better and isn't prone to reckless lunges. Tiote managed not to pick up a yellow last game, long may that continue.

[Barney 0]

When was the last time Saylor was fit for the majority of a season? I genuinely cannot remember.

 

If Colo gets injured this week, we go away to Wolves with this :

 

 

Raylor--Perch--Saylor--Simpson

[manc-mag 1]

Cabaye is a better tackler than Tiote because he times his tackles better and isn't prone to reckless lunges. Tiote managed not to pick up a yellow last game, long may that continue.

 

Tiote's game is to literally just chase a ball around an area of the field where it's getting pinged from one player to another (or in other words by chasing around, to prevent them from being able to ping it about with impunity). He operates in the most fluid area of the pitch. Given that, I accept that a certain number of Tiote's tackles will be miss timed.

 

Not that some aren't a bit needless mind I grant you.

[Kid Dynamite 7034]

Thats only 1 short of our strongest back line tbf

[Tooj 17]

Thats only 1 short of our strongest back line tbf

Do you not rate Santon like?

[Barney 0]

Thats only 1 short of our strongest back line tbf

 

Two short, and my point is that it isn't strong enough.

[Kid Dynamite 7034]

Thats only 1 short of our strongest back line tbf

Do you not rate Santon like?

 

No-one has ever seen him play Gosling was playing alongside Tiote in everyone's starting XI in the off season. Look how that turned out.

[Kid Dynamite 7034]

Thats only 1 short of our strongest back line tbf

 

Two short, and my point is that it isn't strong enough.

 

Unbeaten in 6 and 4th in the table suggests otherwise. SAFC spunked silly wages on Brown and O'Shea and they got torn apart by Norwich. Simpson and Raylor may not get into the national team but they will do a job at the club in our current situation.

[JonGoodwyn 1]

R Taylors been absolutely destroyed in a few games, and its only thanks to poor finishing/bad crosses from the other side that we haven't paid for it too much yet.

[Kevin S. Assilleekunt 1]

Hoillet went past RTaylor without even trying, no feint or anything, just normal dribbling and Taylor basically just ran away from him.

Edited September 28, 2011 by Kevin S. Assilleekunt

[Kid Dynamite 7034]

He's never claimed to be a left back tbf

[manc-mag 1]

The good thing about R Taylor (apart from his set pieces) is that he doesn't divide opinion. Everyone can see he's not up to it.

 

A measures of how improved the side is should be how often someone who's clearly not good enough can get in the team. With that in mind, I'd be encouraged if he was no longer here at the start of next season.