As a player, he manned the midfield for a number of English clubs, most noteworthy being his stint with Tottenham Hotspur in the seventies. He would later step into the manager’s boots for many English clubs, as well as for the U-20 and U-21 English national team squads, the Bahrain national team; there would also be a stint as a caretaker coach for the England national team. However, coming to India was a refreshing experience for Peter Taylor who marks his debut as the head coach of Kerala Blasters FC in Hero Indian Super League Season (ISL) 2015. In an exclusive chat with indiansuperleague.com, Taylor shared his thoughts on the Kochi-based side and his first ‘Indian outing’. Some excerpts from the interview...While other teams chose to train abroad, what made you opt for Thiruvananthapuram for your training sessions?This is my first time with Kerala Blasters FC. I decided to stay in India for our pre-season [training]. I felt that I wanted a lot of foreign players to get used to India, playing in India with the heat and humidity.What are your expectations from Chris Dagnall and Sanchez Watt?Chris and Sanchez are lively forwards and [can] score a goal. I looked at Kerala Blasters’ last season where they scored only nine goals and I felt it needed a bit more pace, a bit more movement upfront. So I’m expecting them to do well." I think we’ve got some talented players in India and it would be great if they get to play in front of such huge crowds."Peter TaylorDo you think Sandesh Jhingan would be a good fit on the European football circuit?Jhingan, I must say, had a very good last season in the ISL. And in the three weeks I’ve been in the camp, I’ve been very impressed. I keep talking to him that maybe one day, he should go to Europe because I think it would be a fantastic experience and he’s got such a good attitude that he would indeed do very well.Before coming to the Hero ISL, what perceptions did you have about Indian football and how has that changed?I always knew, coming here, that the players would be dedicated, with a tremendous attitude. And that hasn’t changed a bit. I’ve been working with them for three weeks and they’ve shown me how good they want to be. I think we’ve got some talented players in India and it would be great if they get to play in front of such huge crowds.
