Ian Taylor (born 4 June 1968 in Birmingham) is an English former
footballer, best known for his time at Aston Villa.
He became Brian Little's
first signing as manager in December 1994, following spells with non-league Moor
Green, and league sides Port Vale and Sheffield Wednesday. The transfer from
Sheffield Wednesday saw forward Guy Whittingham move in the opposite direction.
He played, and scored, in the Aston Villa side that won the 1996 Coca-Cola
cup final 3-0 against Leeds, whilst also netting important goals in Villa's
1997/1998 UEFA cup run, when they would eventually be knocked out to Atlético
Madrid on away goals.
A lifelong supporter of Aston Villa, he used to stand on the famous Holte End
as a child. It is perhaps for this reason, combined with his utterly committed
displays and knack of scoring crucial goals, that he quickly became a fans'
favourite.
| Ian
Taylor |
|
Personal information |
| Full name |
Ian Kenneth Taylor |
| Date of birth |
June 4, 1968 (1968-06-04)
(age 39) |
| Place of birth |
Birmingham, England |
| Playing position |
Midfielder |
|
Youth clubs |
| 1991-1992 |
Moor Green |
|
Senior clubs1 |
| Years |
Club |
App (Gls)* |
1992-1994
1994
1994-2003
2003-2005
2005-2007 |
Port Vale
Sheffield Wednesday
Aston Villa
Derby County
Northampton Town |
083 (28)
014 0(1)
234 (28)
081 (14)
066 0(8) |
1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only.
* Appearances (Goals) |
When Villa played Derby County in a pre-season friendly in 2004, Taylor
scored the winning goal in a 2-1 victory for Derby and, once they realised who
had scored, the cheering from the Villa fans was as loud as that from the Derby
fans. Still held in very high esteem by the majority of Aston Villa fans, he has
perhaps gained cult status for life when, in October 2005, instead of sitting
with the directors and VIPs for the second city derby against Birmingham City at
St Andrews, he was amongst the travelling Aston Villa contingent.
Since leaving Aston Villa in the summer of 2003, he has had spells with
Championship side Derby County, where he was made captain, and League One outfit
Northampton Town, and is now very much in the twilight of his career.
The club and Taylor announced on the 23 April 2007 that the game at home to
Huddersfield Town FC would be the last of his career, before retiring as a
professional player.[1]. It is known that an army of Aston Villa fans attended
this match.
At Aston Villa's away match against Manchester City the day after Taylor's
final game, the travelling Villa fans sung "There's only one Ian Taylor".
