Matthew Taylor (footballer)

For other people named Matthew Taylor, see Matthew Taylor (disambiguation).

Matthew Taylor

Personal information
Full name	Matthew Simon Taylor
Date of birth	27 November 1981 (1981-11-27) (age 29)
Place of birth	Oxford, England
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Playing position	Left winger / Left wingback
Club information
Current club	West Ham United
Number	14
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1999–2002	Luton Town	129	(16)
2002–2008	Portsmouth	178	(23)
2008–2011	Bolton Wanderers	123	(23)
2011–	West Ham United	10	(1)
National team‡
2002–2003	England U21	3	(0)
2007	England B	1	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 20:40, 29 October 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 22:00, 9 September 2011 (UTC)

Matthew Simon "Matty" Taylor (born 27 November 1981 in Oxford) is an English footballer who plays for West Ham United. He is noted for his powerful long-range strikes.

Club career

Early career

Matthew Taylor, whose father, Simon, is an architect, 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 and he also played for his primary school, Rush Common School. He played for Quarry, based in Headington, who were managed by his father. They participated in the Oxford Boys League, which they won on several occasions apart from the 1993–94 season, when they were pipped to the title by arch-rivals, Witney Vikings. He was a boyhood Tottenham Hotspur supporter.^{[citation needed]}

Luton Town

He began his career at Luton Town, 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.

Portsmouth

His impressive displays led to interest from Premier League clubs, but he instead decided, in July 2002, to sign for First Division side Portsmouth for £750,000.^[2] The fee was set averting the need for a tribunal, causing Luton manager Joe Kinnear to lament: "at least Dick Turpin had the decency to wear a mask".^[3]

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 won the First Division title in May 2003. As well as being a regular in the team during the season, he also scored seven 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. 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. Despite failing to score a league goal in his Premiership debut season, Taylor did hit the equaliser in an FA Cup tie at Anfield on 15 February 2004, when he ran the length of the pitch to celebrate with the supporters after a forceful right-footed finish at the Kop End.^{[citation needed]}

Taylor's first Premiership goal came against Middlesbrough on 1 February 2005.^[4] The summer signing of David Unsworth from Everton meant Taylor only became a regular in the side in the second half of the season.

New manager Alain Perrin utilised Taylor as a left midfielder during the 2005–06 season. On 29 October 2005, he scored from 40 yards at Sunderland's Stadium of Light, winning the BBC Goal of the Month.^{[citation needed]} Spotting the goalkeeper Kelvin Davis off his line, Taylor hit a dipping left-footed half-volley over Davis' head and into the back of the net. Portsmouth had been trailing Sunderland 1–0 in the crucial "six pointer" but Taylor inspired a second half comeback with two goals and two assists in a 4–1 victory.^{[citation needed]} When Harry Redknapp returned, Taylor initially retained his attacking role but the arrival of Andrés D'Alessandro on loan and Redknapp's disapproval of Perrin's left-back, Grégory Vignal, meant that Taylor returned to full-back for the latter stages of the season. 2005–06 could be considered Taylor's breakthrough season as a Premiership footballer. 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 on 29 April 2006 to clinch another 2–1 win and survival from relegation.

His good form for Portsmouth brought interest from Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham, but he signed a long term contract with Portsmouth in July 2006.^[5] In the 2006–07 season, Taylor was a regular in the Portsmouth side on the left of midfield. Despite the team's good form, it took until early December for him to score his first league goal, in a game against Aston Villa.^{[citation needed]} 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.^[6][7]

Taylor before a Bolton Wanderers game in 2008

His first-half goal against Manchester United at Fratton Park in April 2007 sent Portsmouth on their way to a 2–1 victory over the Premier League champions. His final goal for Portsmouth was a penalty kick in August 2007, in a 3–1 win over Bolton Wanderers, the club he moved to five months later.^{[citation needed]}

Bolton Wanderers

After losing his place in the Portsmouth team to Niko Kranjčar in the first half of the 2007–08 season, Taylor moved to Bolton Wanderers on Thursday 17 January 2008 for an undisclosed fee, after rejecting an offer from Sunderland.^[8] On 29 March 2008 Taylor scored his first goals for Bolton with a brace in the 3–2 home defeat to Arsenal. On 11 May 2008 Taylor scored his first away goal for Bolton with a last minute equaliser, gaining Bolton a 1–1 draw against Chelsea on the last day of the 2007–08 Premier League season. In July 2008, having previously worn number 32, Taylor was given the number 7 shirt previously worn by Stelios Giannakopoulos. Taylor scored the 50th goal of his career in a 3–1 win at West Ham United on 5 October 2008^[9] and reached double figures in the league for the first time when scoring against Chelsea on 11 April 2009.^{[citation needed]} In July 2009 he signed a new long term contract at Bolton Wanderers. In the 2009–10 season, after the Blackburn Rovers game blood tests showed that Taylor had developed glandular fever.^[10]

West Ham United

On 23 July 2011, Taylor signed for West Ham United for an undisclosed fee.^[11] He made his competitive debut on 7 August 2011 in 1–0 home defeat to Cardiff City^[12] and scored his first goal in West Ham's 4-3 win over his former club, Portsmouth, on 10 September.^[13]

Career statistics

Club

^[14][15]

Club performance			League		Cup		League Cup		Continental		Total
Season	Club	League	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
England			League		FA Cup		League Cup		Europe		Total
1999–00	Luton Town	Second Division	41	4	5	1	1	0	-		47	5
2000–01			45	1	4	0	4	0	-		53	1
2001–02		Third Division	43	11	1	0	1	0	-		45	11
2002–03	Portsmouth	First Division	35	7	1	0	2	0	-		38	7
2003–04		Premier League	30	0	5	3	3	1	-		38	4
2004–05			31	1	1	0	4	0	-		36	1
2005–06			34	6	2	0	1	1	-		37	7
2006–07			35	8	2	0	2	1	-		39	9
2007–08			13	1	-		2	0	-		15	1
2007–08	Bolton Wanderers		16	3	-		-		3	0	19	3
2008–09			34	10	1	0	-		-		35	10
2009–10			37	8	3	0	3	0	-		43	8
2010–11			36	2	4	0	2	0	-		42	2
2011–12	West Ham United	Championship	10	1	0	0	1	0	-		11	1
Total	England		440	63	29	4	26	3	3	0	498	70
Career total			440	63	29	4	26	3	3	0	498	70

As of 14:43, 21 November 2011 (UTC)

Honours

Club

Portsmouth

• Football League Division One (1): 2003
• Barclays Asia Trophy (1): 2007

References

1. ^ "Premier League Player Profile". Premier League. http://www.premierleague.com/page/PlayerProfile/0,,12306~10387,00.html. Retrieved 16 March 2011. 
2. ^ "Pompey seal Taylor switch". BBC Sport. 3 July 2002. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/luton_town/2038081.stm. Retrieved 29 August 2007. 
3. ^ Burt, Jason (20 December 2003). "FOOTBALL: Taylor fights to keep career and Portsmouth afloat". The Independent (UK). http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/taylor-fights-to-keep-career-and-portsmouth-afloat-577168.html. Retrieved 24 July 2011. 
4. ^ "Portsmouth 2–1 Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. 1 February 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/4221111.stm. Retrieved 25 April 2009. 
5. ^ "Pompey pair agree long-term deals". BBC Sport. 4 July 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/p/portsmouth/5144922.stm. Retrieved 19 January 2008. 
6. ^ "Portsmouth 2–0 Everton". BBC Sport. 10 December 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/6201480.stm. Retrieved 25 July 2011. 
7. ^ McNulty, Phil (16 December 2006). "Arsenal 2–2 Portsmouth". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/6164309.stm. Retrieved 25 July 2011. 
8. ^ "SKY SPORTS: Taylor makes Bolton move". Sky Sports. 17 January 2008]. http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_3055235,00.html. Retrieved 17 January 2008. 
9. ^ Sheehan, Pat (5 October 2008). "West Ham 1 Bolton 3". thesun.co.uk (London). http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/1769680/West-Ham-1-Bolton-3.html. Retrieved 24 July 2011. 
10. ^ "Illness affected my form – Taylor". BBC News. 19 April 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/b/bolton_wanderers/8630682.stm. 
11. ^ "West Ham sign Bolton midfielder Matt Taylor". BBC Football. 23 July 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/14262019.stm. Retrieved 23 July 2011. 
12. ^ Da Silva, Michael (7 August 2011). "West Ham 0 – 1 Cardiff". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_1/14356630.stm. Retrieved 9 August 2011. 
13. ^ "West Ham 4 - 3 Portsmouth". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_1/14773319.stm. Retrieved 21 September 2011. 
14. ^ "Matthew Taylor Career Stats". Soccerbase. 12 November 2010. http://www.soccerbase.com/players_details.sd?playerid=17236. Retrieved 12 November 2010. 
15. ^ Matthew Taylor | Bolton Wanderers | Team | Profiles

External links

• Matthew Taylor career stats at Soccerbase
• BBC profile
• 40-yard goal vs. Sunderland, 29 October 2005
• Matt's Life With The Stars, But They're No Big Time Charlies

Persondata
Name	Taylor, Matthew
Alternative names
Short description	Footballer
Date of birth	27 November 1981
Place of birth	Oxford, England
Date of death
Place of death