Town boss Mick McCarthy says striker Paul Taylor should be fit enough to join in with the rest of the squad at the start of pre-season. The 25-year-old has been out of action since suffering a foot injury which eventually required surgery in only his third game for the Blues against Wolves in September, shortly after joining from Peterborough United for an initial fee of £1.5 million which could rise to £2.5 million.

McCarthy says the Liverpudlian is making progress and should be fine by the time pre-season training starts: “I would think so, the way he’s going.

“He’s been out kicking a ball. I would be very disappointed if he’s not. He’s got a long summer of rehabilitation in front of him, so he will be.”

While Taylor will be looking to put his injury problems behind him and get back into the Town side during 2013/14, midfielder Jay Emmanuel-Thomas will be pushing to feature on a more regular basis, having been in and out of the team during this campaign.

Despite that, the Blues manager has been pleased with the 22-year-old since he came to the club: “He’s training well, he’s been involved.

“I have to say he’s been nothing but a model pro for me. He’s just trained all the time, even when he’s been out of the team.

“He’s seen me because he wants to play, which is fine, but he’s behaved himself impeccably and trained really well. He’s been a smashing kid.”

Could posters not make comments speculating on Taylor's court case as doing so could cause you legal problems.

Photo: Action Images

bluefeast added 06:55 - Apr 25 I find the paul taylor thing odd. If you can run , kick a ball , play in golf matches now , why would there be any doubt about him being ready for pre-season. Something not right here.
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BillBlue added 07:05 - Apr 25 I think bluefeast because foot injuries are the most difficult to overcome. The foot has so many bones and other bits and bobs so it is not just one torn ligament or a fractured bone. I accept the difficulty in overcoming the damaged foot but what worries me is will he have lost anything but, like MM, I am very glad that he will be in time for pre-season training because that will help in getting him up to speed which otherwise might have been very difficult.

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Roystheboy added 07:42 - Apr 25 Because playing competitive professional football matches is nothing like playing golf for god sake........
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StuartBrett8 added 07:48 - Apr 25 Am I right in thinking Taylor also plays right wing?
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oscarwhiting added 07:52 - Apr 25 Stuart: only one way to find out, look on FIFA lol
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StuartBrett8 added 07:53 - Apr 25 Good thinking lol
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Keaneish added 08:01 - Apr 25 Oh yeah.... Forgot all about Taylor!
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bluefeast added 08:07 - Apr 25 Its not just playing golf , he is running , he is kicking a ball and we have read that he is involved in training. He broke a bone in his foot. That doesn't take this long ,look at all the players who break a bone in their foot. They are back after operation in 5 weeks. Now read the article again for clues from MM. Hope to have him for pre season ,summer of rehab etc. I suspect their is more to this .

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martleshamitfc added 08:11 - Apr 25 I expect it depends on the outcome of his pendiing court case.
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theobald1985 added 08:20 - Apr 25 he looks a lot older than 25 in this photo. be great to have him back in the side
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paris_mitchell_in_oz added 08:38 - Apr 25 Hope Taylor is available for selection come the start of next season. I remember being very impressed with him when he first arrived at the club.
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Karlosfandangal added 08:41 - Apr 25 A Jewell signing who may become a good player for us and get the goals we need under MM. Lets hope all his off field issues are cleared up and he is fully focused on the season ahead
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bluefeast added 09:05 - Apr 25 I didn't wish to mention the court case but reading between the lines this was probably on MMs mind when he was asked about Taylor. Thanks for the negative marks on previous posts. Enjoy your breakfast of wild boar ,caught with spear ,eaten in cave..............
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Marcus_Evans added 09:17 - Apr 25 bluefeast - there are plenty of footballers who are out for almost a whole season if they have broken bones in their foot. We also waited for 6 weeks I believe to see if we could avoid surgery which unfortunately backfired. There's no point in rushing him back, we have 2 games left and MM is fairly straight talking. There is no conspiracy and yes the court case will have a bearing but this will have nothing to do with how long it has taken to get fit.

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bluefeast added 09:23 - Apr 25 Well we shall see wont we. The bloke can run and kick a football ,trains etc etc ,yet their is only a hope that he will be here for pre-season from MM who knows more than he would say. Open your eyes , Taylor can run and he can kick a ball and is involved with training now ,so why the hopefully regarding preseason training. Brains are dangerous ,a few people ducked when they were given out.....

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Marshalls_Mullet added 09:53 - Apr 25 He's on a very serious charge, I am not counting my chickens on this one.
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Marcus_Evans added 10:05 - Apr 25 bluefeast - if you are too dumb to understand the difference between running round and kicking a football a bit to being able to play 90 minutes of competitive football then.. wow! Not everything at ITFC is a conspiracy, Evans isn't the Dark Overlord and Clegg wasn't to blame for everything
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bluefeast added 10:15 - Apr 25 Doctor Bunsen , I have never mentioned him playing 90 mins of competitive football. Im mentioning pre-season training . That there is hope he will be there. If he is running now ,kicking a ball , training etc , why would he not be available for pre-season training as an absolute definite. So whos the thick one , back in your cave Doctor hahahaha..
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Pessimistic added 10:35 - Apr 25 I don't want to get into a free-for-all on this but some of us are reading far too much into this. Foot injuries take an age to recover from generally and the court case is an issue here. What you also have to all understand is understated Yorkshire wit which Mr.Mick has in abundance! You also have to imagine how the question was phrased which often determines how he answers it. I would read nothing into these remarks as the likelihood is they were taken out of context. I think Paul Taylor will be a great boost to the blues if he fully regains his fitness though and providing he steers clear of prison!

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Michael11 added 10:36 - Apr 25 Does anyone know when his final court hearing is? Let's hope he gets cleared of any wrong doing and gets his head on getting fit and firing. Hopefully could turn out to be like a new signing this summer.
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Marcus_Evans added 10:39 - Apr 25 bluefeast - pre-season training is the most intense period of training so he has to be properly fit. It's just MM managing expectations. Nothing more, nothing less
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MattyP202 added 10:41 - Apr 25 Taylor will be a big player for us next season, those few games he played before the injury he played well and created chances and looked like a great player. It will take him the whole of pre season to get back to 100% fitness! COYB!
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Marcus_Evans added 10:42 - Apr 25 Michael 11 - it's on 13th May, but is by no means the final court hearing. If the magistrate feels the potential sentence (if he is guilty) is too lenient for the magistrate to deal with (maximum 12 months) or the defendant opts for a trial by jury which a lot do (and is their right) then this will drag on until the Autumn.
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bluefeast added 10:44 - Apr 25 Pre-season training is about base line fitness , it involves in the main different running approaches. Distance ,short sprints ,etc etc. It does not involve contact. Maybe its MM managing expectations ,or maybe he is thinking ,well he should be here ,but he has a major legal issue on his hands that may mean he is not. I hope he is ,he offers something to the team.
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MichaelRockyLavelle added 10:55 - Apr 25 Doctor_Bunsen. I think bluefeast has a point, surely if he is already training etc, then it should be a certainty that he will be ready to start preseason with the others. He may not be up to the same standard but the fact that he is only a possibility for preseason does seem a bit dubious. But hopefully we are wrong and it is just caution on the part of Mick. Let's crack on next season and hope that Taylor can help us push for a top 10 finish.

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