This may be Neil Taylor’s last season at Aston Villa as he is no longer commanding a starting place under Dean Smith and is in the final year of his contract.
Ashley Preece of Birmingham Live isn’t expecting the 31-year-old to be handed a contract extension, writing that he will “most likely move on to pastures new”, so a departure seems to be on the cards next summer.
Taylor has been a good servant for Villa, making 102 appearances in all competitions since his 2017 arrival from Swansea City, but he is clearly surplus to requirements now. Since Matt Targett was signed last summer from Southampton, Taylor has been on the periphery, only playing in the Carabao Cup.
The Welsh international, who boasts 43 caps for his country, made 34 Championship appearances in Villa’s promotion-winning campaign of 2018/19, but hasn’t managed a single minute of football in the Premier League this season.
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Taylor has been an unused substitute or left out of the matchday squad in recent weeks, so it does seem likely that he’ll leave when his contract expires. However, he can take pride in the part that he played in getting Villa back into the top flight after a three-year absence.
Targett is Villa’s first-choice left-back now, so Smith will only need to bring in cover for the 25-year-old at the end of the season.
In other news, Aston Villa face one major obstacle in their transfer plans for this former Arsenal player.
