Neil Taylor has admitted he's delighted to finally be able to play under Chris Wilder at Boro after years of admiration. 

Taylor became Wilder's first signing as Middlesbrough manager in November having joined as a free agent after leaving Aston Villa in the summer, having only made one Premier League appearance for the Midlands side in the 2020-21 campaign.

While the club's ambition was the biggest factor in his decision to join Boro, Taylor told The Gazette that Wilder was a big sway as well:

“Chris was a big pull for me. I’ve admired his teams and the way they work and the way they set up and I really wanted to work with him as well.

“I always found playing against his teams, especially Sheffield United, really difficult.

“Obviously these things never guarantee success but he’s created a culture here very quickly and I’ve not been disappointed with how he is. It’s been everything I expected and more.

Taylor made his debut in the win against Bournemouth last weekend and was pleased to slot in at left wing-back as it's a position he is used to playing in.

"I've played wing-back for Swansea, I've played it for Wales in a certain way, there's always different variations of the 3-5-2 in terms of how your midfield sets up or whether you play with a front two or one off," Taylor continued

"Chris certainly has his way of doing it and he's been successful with it.

“Playing wing-back always feels an important role in the team because you sort of do both roles in terms of defensively and offensively."

With Marc Bola ruled out for at least the next month with a knee injury which happened in training, Taylor is set to get an extended period as a starter after not featuring for a long time at Villa.

The Verdict

Neil Taylor signing for Middlesbrough is a useful for one for a number of reasons. His age and experience, as well as his versatility, will be a good asset for Boro.

But his familiarity with playing in a 3-5-2 will be extremely useful to Wilder over the coming months as he continues to drill his philosophy into his side.

Wilder will need players he can trust to continue this transition into his tactical approach and Taylor will certainly be one of them.