Taylor Not a World Beater Yet

By Nick Raynor
August 2 2006

Newcastle United manager Glenn Roeder has urged fans to be patient with defender Steven Taylor.

Before missing a large chunk of last season with a shoulder injury, Steven Taylor quickly became a fans favourite on Tyneside with consistent good performances in the heart of the defence in 37 games for the Magpies.

 

However, against PSV, Taylor did not perform well but Roeder insists he is still young and not to amount pressure on the Newcastle born England under-21 international.

 

Roeder said:

 

"Steven Taylor has lots of potential and he will be a top Premiership player. But not after playing less than 40 games.

 

"He will suffer from what I call a disease in British football where a young player has two or three excellent games and suddenly he becomes a world beater.

 

"You have to let young players like Taylor grow up first. Let them walk before they can sprint.

 

"I saw this with Jermain Defoe and Joe Cole when I was manager of West Ham.

 

"When Joe first came to Upton Park he arrived as a boy wonder and there was so much pressure on him, but while he is now performing on a world stage it has taken him some time to get there.

 

"Taylor has done really well since he first burst on to the scene. But he is not the finished article at 20 in what I always call an old man's position.

 

"And we have got to give him the chance to mature.

 

"We cannot expect him to be brilliant every game. Rio Ferdinand is now a world-class player but even he didn't do it every week in his early days at West Ham.

 

"You have got to give Harry Redknapp, and I suppose myself, some of the credit for the way Rio has come through.

 

"Now we've got to do the same with Taylor. What we will not do is break a young player's back and live to regret it."