Stoke City head of football operations Andy Cousins has indicated the Potters are still to make a final decision on Connor Taylor’s next move - whether to keep him at the bet365 Stadium or loan him out again - as he prepares to line up against Bristol Rovers at the Mem.
Taylor is set to start for Michael O’Neill’s side in Tuesday night’s friendly in BS7, just over two months after he was celebrating on the pitch in blue and white having been part of the team that secured promotion into League One via a final day 7-0 triumph over Scunthorpe United.
The 20-year-old has been involved in all three of Stoke’s pre-season games so far, lining up on the right-hand side of the back three with O’Neill admitting at the start of the summer he wants to get a proper look at the defender before deciding his pathway to the first-team.
That will either be to remain part of the squad for the 2022/23 Championship campaign or send him out on loan for another season, with Cousins indicating that the “next step” needs to be made, implying that will be in League One. Although, as he admits, Rovers are not the only team in the division who have asked to take Taylor, who signed a new contract earlier this month, on loan for the campaign.
“We’d like it to be here,” said Cousins to the official Stoke website, when asked as to what the plan is for Taylor. “The idea of signing a new contract is that it will be here. But we have to assess that realistically along the way. There’s a balance with players as they are on an upward trajectory that they keep playing games. Once that opportunity is there it will be here.
“If we do feel like that at some point he needs to go to a next step, obviously Bristol Rovers last season were in League Two, so there are quite a few who would take him on loan in League One. We’re assessing that in pre-season.
“At the minute we’re really impressed with how he’s doing, how he’s coping and how he’s handling things. Whether you're Connor Taylor or Phil Jagielka, every day you have to impress the manager to get into the team on a Saturday. He’ll be given the same opportunity as everyone else.”
After playing Rovers, Stoke host Hearts at home before their Championship opener at Millwall on July 30.
They do have reasonable resources in that area of the park with veterans Phil Jagielka, Aden Flint, Ben Wilmot and Harry Souttar, who is recovering from a knee injury and isn’t expected back until September. That alone could convince O’Neill, should Taylor continue to impress, that he’s worth keeping on board for the season.
However, equally, once Souttar returns, if he’s relegated to fifth choice that immediately impacts his minutes, when he would undoubtedly be a starter if he was to return to the Gas.
Stoke are also thought to be in the market for another centre-back signing, with previous target, Liverpool’s Ben Davies on the cusp of signing for Rangers.
“We’re delighted with Connor. I think credit goes to Connor himself for what he’s done,” Cousins added. “He’s been supported really well in all his steps along the way. When you look at his journey, the guys picked him up here from essentially non-league and brought him into a professional set-up.
“He impressed us at the end of the lockdown season. He had been training with the group and played in the Coventry game and did pretty well. I think that probably caught the eye of a lot of clubs to take him out on loan. He then excelled out on loan last season.”
Joey Barton’s relationship with Stoke and the reputation he’s built with the club following the development of Taylor and Harry Souttar at Fleetwood Town before him, keeps the Gas very much in contention once a decision is reached.
Although the level of Taylor’s performances and consistency surprised some in the game, Cousins insists they were always confident that he’d excel away from the bet365 Stadium, and is setting the example for others to follow.
Intriguingly enough, Will Forrester is another talented centre-back lurking in their Under-23 ranks who has first-team experience and if Taylor stays, could end up being loaned out.
“I think you need a manager or coaching staff to believe in you, which Joey Barton certainly did. Bristol Rovers deserve credit for the part they played in it last year and the academy staff for equipping him to be able to deal with that,” Cousins said.
“You can only give players the opportunity and Connor has taken it with both hands and excelled gradually through the season. He didn’t start in the team in the first couple of games, worked his way in and his performances got better and better along with Bristol Rovers really towards the end of the season when they nicked promotion.
“As a long it’s a perfect example of what success can be. Hopefully it sets a pathway for a few more this year.”
READ NEXT:
