Lyle Taylor has offered the case for the defence in Jonathan Rowe’s Norwich City transfer saga, dismissing the idea that players should show loyalty in football withdrew from City’s matchday squad 20 minutes before a team meeting on the day of their Championship opener against Oxford United amid interest from Marseille and has since been banished to the U21s.
That move to France is edging closer, with Marseille’s third bid of a loan with an obligation to buy at £13.5m, an offer significantly closer to the Canaries valuation of the 21-year-old.
Since that episode in the build-up to the season opener at the Kassam Stadium, many opinions have been passed on Rowe’s decision and conduct, but Taylor has real-life experience when it comes to opting not to play ahead of a potential move.
During his time at Charlton, Taylor opted against signing a short-term contract extension when the season was extended due to the Covid pandemic in 2019/20 to avoid risking injury that could have jeopardised a ‘life-changing’ move to Nottingham Forest. was heavily criticised for that stance at the time, but can understand why players would take the decision to protect themselves in hope of earning a move elsewhere, adding that loyalty doesn’t exist in the modern game.
“I find it quite difficult to speak on anybody else’s situation because my set of circumstances were: I’d just turned 30, I was offered a contract that would quite literally change mine and my family’s life and I had the okay from the senior players in the squad,” Taylor told the 72+ Podcast on BBC Five Liveconversations were had, and we went round and round the houses. The decision at the end of the day was what the decision was, but the manager understood and accepted it.
“Loyalty in football doesn’t exist. When a football club or a set of fans don’t like a player and they want him out – they say the player is stealing a living. If the player does well for the team and refuses to sign a new contract, that player is a Judas. If a player decides to leave to better themselves, their life and career, then that player is a Judas.
“I understand it because in football we have this mob mentality where every single fan thinks their club is the best club in the world and that is why we have such a great game and product across the four leagues and further down.
“But when you have the conversation like I did with the manager, the head of recruitment and the people who make decisions as well as the senior players in the group, and they’re saying ‘we understand what you’ve got there and that you’ve come off an injury’ and go ‘you can’t risk this for that’.
“We still offered an insurance policy against me which, should I have got a long-term injury, the loss of that contract was negated to a degree – but that was rejected. There are a lot of things that went on. We tried to find a way around the issues, but there were things stopping that from happening.
Since that episode in the build-up to the season opener at the Kassam Stadium, many opinions have been passed on Rowe’s decision and conduct, but Taylor has real-life experience when it comes to opting not to play ahead of a potential move.
” the end of the day, I’m still Judas because I made a decision for me. It is what it is. You have people to look after who aren’t at your place of work. It’s your job to earn money to support your family.”
Charlie Austin, the former QPR, Southampton, and West Brom striker, felt that Rowe was wrong to make the decision on a matchday and believes it could have been handled better, both individually and collectively.
“Some clubs’ fans want their cake and eat it as well. When you perform and hit the high standards, brilliant – you’re the best ever, and they sing your name,” Austin said. “Then there is a bit of interest coming in, and they turn a little bit because you want to go and better yourself.
“But, when you don’t perform they are quick to get on your back then and start calling you X, Y and Z.
“When it comes to footballers, it’s the best job in the world, and everyone has an opinion about certain situations, and ultimately, nobody knows what they would do if they were put in his situation.
“With the Norwich situation, do you do it on the day of the game? I’m not sure. You haven’t got a phone call from your agent at 10am on a Saturday morning saying, ‘Go and tell the manager you’re not playing’; that’s ridiculous. Tell him Friday night and show a set.”
With the Rowe saga poised to conclude this week, Taylor is backing City to find a suitable replacement and the club have scenario planned for this outcome.
“All football clubs prepare for all eventualities, whatever that might be, but the best-laid plans sometimes don’t work,” Taylor added.
“I’m sure there will be a team of people in an office locked in there every single day, probably for 18 hours a day, trying to figure out how and where they can recruit players and at what price.
“We’re talking about a big football club here in Norwich City, so they aren’t going to be short of recruitment staff.”
