After the euphoria of saturdays result at Man Utd. I want to get some honest opinions as to whether (Iknow it was only one game) he is the man for the job at left back or do we look elsewhere. He in my opinion he was the only one who looked completely out of his depth and was given a torrid time. He stands off his winger to much allowing them to get outside him far to easily. All of Utd success came down our left and it was a worry, he was defending right in frnt of me all of the first half so could see exactly what was happening. It is even more of a concern when we all could see that we were stregnthened by the arrival of Tiendalli at left back, now that is something I thought i would never say. So i suppose the question is, do we stick with Taylor, go with Tiendalli at left back (who looked far more impressive than Taylor on saturday, and stopped a lot of their success down their righ and our left) or do we sign a new Left back. My opinion is that we sign a new left back now, Knowing that we have cover in either taylor or Tiendalli.
Give him time, sign a new LB/RB and Tiendalli is good at defending but not attacking (doesn't track back quick enough) but good backup. Also januzaj can cause trouble for anyone!
You don't become a bad player overnight, Taylor is a quality player and I believe he will have a top season for us this season.
Agree ,Januzaj has beaten better players than Taylor and to be honest although beaten for pace on a number of occasions he kept shepherding him out toward the by line which gave time for Ash to react as he did .It's good although a bit early to be confirmed but we could reasonable have cover with Tiendalli as long as he gives the same commitment when given the chance if not then yes we do need to bring a new face in .I imagine Monk was happy to leave Davies go knowing what he had left though but theres still time to bring someone in .
Thought Taylor did well before Janusaj came on and was ripped a new one thereafter. But as has been said Janusaj is a top player and will do that more than once this season. I think Taylor is a very decent defender and although Tiendalli did well on Saturday he's had more than one poor game for us. I really think we need another LB and RB though.
Dragon, Taylor was defending in front of me and have to say Lindegard got in behind him far to often for my liking even before Janusaj came on. He just seems to stand off and give them far to much space and time and allow them in behind him, he also gave the ball away far to often maybe it was nerves I dont know. What i will say he did not stop trying and made one superb block.
As soon as Ben Davies left many (of us) were calling for new left back because Taylor is definitely a step down. Before we hear calls for him to be given time, he made 17 appearances last season and had every opportunity throughout the season to reclaim the left back position but didn't take them. A good decision by Monk to hook him off as soon as possible. The problems he had throughout the game on Saturday were ones he has had since his injury and some he had prior to it. Minutes after getting a yellow for a nasty tackle on Januzaj he was lucky the winger didn't go down under his challenge in the box (more cynical players would have) as a second yellow and penalty would left us with 10 men. As it was the resulting corner led to their goal. The word liability gets bandied around quite bit on this board, maybe we have found a someone who truly merits that epithet. Personally I'd release him as soon as we get a first team left back in place. But, that won't happen as he was entrusted with the captains armband last season by Laudrup and Monk.
Bob I do tend to agree in parts. i am not sure he is a liability even though I think we need better. Do you think he has lost a yard of pace since his injury.
I have said it before and i will say it again...Taylor is our weakest link and not the same player before his injury and monk must find a solid LB quick and relegate taylor to the reserves, Tiendalli is much more trustworthy to have on the bench...my view only...
Give the lad a chance to get some games together before condemning him. I thought he had a good game up until Januzaj came on, and lets be fair, yeh he gave the ball away, so did every other player, Dyer did numerous times, he failed to run past their young CB, thought he was far worse than Taylor, Taylor stopped countless crosses doing his job. Better players struggle with the odd game here and there, give him a run of games, and he will come good. His yellow was also mentioned, it was 1 late challenge, yet our biggest liability, that got away with murder was Shelvey.
Swan I cant argue with most of what you say, I would start him against Burnley but if he exposes himself as badly again in that game there has to be a change. All of Man utd dangerous situations came from our left. I cant agree that he was doing well before Janusaj came on as i saw lindergard go by him 4 or 5 times. We cant afford to wait to long to find out he will or wont improve with the window closing. The difference with Dyer giving the ball away is that he is up the pitch and it doesnt cause us so much of a problem. Taylor giving the ball away so deep put us under a lot of pressure. just my view.
Taylor has not been the same player since his return and its plain to see that, It's a shame for him but we cant keep using a player that is not up to standard and we must find better. once the players lose their trust in him then they will try to avoid passing to him and that will cause us problems. many fans are saying the same about Taylor so it must be noticed by monk and i hope he does something about it...
Was lucky enough to be at OT Saturday, still buzzing, great day. The team looked cool, calm, together and in control all day exuding concentration and unity, brilliant. Hate to say this but Taylor stood out for all the wrong reasons. He was tucked up every time anyone ran at him. His problem is obvious, he's put on too much muscle and got all chunky. He's lost all his his agility and quickness, which he had in abundance before his leg break. With all the excess bulk he's now as nimble as a cart horse and a barge would beat him to a turn. He has two options, lose two stone of muscle or go on some extreme stretching/yoga regimen to put some spring back in his legs and backside. He has to do something because, right now, he cant turn and he'll get slaughtered by the slowest winger all season long. Not to mention that he'll be a liability every game he plays.
