Lyle Taylor has expressed regret over not staying longer at Birmingham City, where he enjoyed a successful loan spell in 2022. The striker found the fans incredibly supportive and thrived on the pitch, netting five goals in 14 Championship appearances to help the Blues avoid relegation.
After his loan, Taylor returned to Nottingham Forest for pre-season, where despite a promising performance, he was unable to break into Steve Cooper’s Premier League plans for the 2022/23 season, failing to make a single league appearance.
The 35-year-old striker went on to have brief and less notable loan spells in League One and ultimately played in League Two for Colchester United last season. He is currently with National League South side Chelmsford.
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Taylor also reflected on the managerial changes at Birmingham City. Lee Bowyer, who had originally signed him and previously coached him at Charlton, left the club at the end of the 2021/22 season, with John Eustace replacing him. When asked if there was an option to remain at St Andrew’s, Taylor was candid: “I don’t know if it was ever an option. Looking back at it now, if I’d been given the opportunity to stay at Birmingham I would have loved to have stayed.”
He praised the fans’ support, saying, “I got on really well with the fans. The fans were brilliant.”
Taylor recounted his return to Forest, newly promoted to the Premier League, and his efforts during pre-season. “In pre-season I did really well and there’s players saying, ‘You’ve got to be given an opportunity’. I remember speaking to Steve Cooper pretty early on, maybe even the first day, and he told me, ‘Find yourself a new home’.”
Despite his agent encouraging him to fight for a place, and his status as top scorer in pre-season, Taylor was sidelined. “I said to Steve Cooper, ‘Just give me one appearance in the Premier League and I will walk away from this football club, not a problem’. And he didn’t.”