Nottingham Forest’s Lyle Taylor reacts to fan criticism | OneFootball

Lyle Taylor has opened up on some of the criticism he has received since he joined Nottingham Forest last summer.

Forest were among the lowest scorers in the EFL under Chris Hughton last season and scored only 37 goals in 46 games in the Championship.

Taylor bore the brunt of that criticism, scoring four goals in the Championship and falling behind Lewis Grabban and Glenn Murray in the pecking order.

Taylor is a rejuvenated figure under Steve Cooper, though, and scored twice in the space of a minute in stoppage time against Bristol City in midweek after coming on as a substitute.

Speaking to Nottinghamshire Live, Taylor opened up on how challenging of a year it has been for him.

He said: “I’ll be honest, it’s been one of the hardest years of my footballing career. It’s just not gone the way I dreamed it would go.

“Honestly, it’s been really bad, it’s been really tough. But you never get or expect any sympathy as a footballer; you’re not going to get it. It is what it is. We are strong. Invariably, the majority are stronger than the average person because of what we have to deal with.

“It’s just about being a bit understanding that footballers are people, we are human, and we all struggle. There’s the online side of it, there’s all sorts – you go shopping in Sainsbury’s and someone says, ‘will you get out of my club’. You’re like, ‘Jesus Christ, just give me a chance, you’ve not even seen me play that much’.”

The Verdict

You feel sorry for Taylor in some ways as he had so many options to choose from after leaving Charlton on a free.

He doesn’t turn into a bad player overnight, and sometimes it just doesn’t work out for someone.