Rob Taylor’s allegiance to Brentford outweighs his affinity for Norwich City and that’s why he’ll be cheering on Thomas Frank’s men when the two sides clash on Saturday.

Whilst Taylor went through a YTS scheme with the Canaries and he will be ever grateful for the start they gave him in the game, it doesn’t compare to his time at then Griffin Park.

Taylor is a legend with the West London club following his 73 goals in 217 appearances as part of a successful career that also saw him enjoy success at Gillingham and million pound moves to Manchester City and Wolves.

Norwich-born, Taylor now resides in Swaffham but regards Brentford as something of a second home and hopes they can continue their impressive start to Premier League life tomorrow against the Canaries.

However, he admits to having sympathy for Daniel Farke’s plight so far this season.

“Whether the players aren’t quite good enough to do what Daniel Farke wants them to do, I’m not sure,” he said. “Sometimes as a manager you can struggle to get your players to take your ideas into a game situation.

“Every player should understand their role. Sometimes they don’t know when to press or they don't know when to drop off. They’re caught in two minds when you do it. You then get caught between the lines by the opposition.”

Farke’s tactics have looked uncharacteristically muddled at times this season with a departure from ‘Farke-ball’ attempted to give his side a foothold in the division.

However, Taylor insists the German has got to tinker to try and arrest their woeful start to the season.

“When you’re struggling then you have to try different things from a manager’s point of view,” he added. “You try and get the best out of the players you’ve got.

“When you start losing then it’s so hard to get out of that and get that first win. I think Farke is trying to find that balance. I feel sorry for him at the moment because he’s probably caught in 10 minds over what to do with the players that he’s got.

“It’s hard for him. People say ‘sack him’ but he can only do what he can with the players he has.

“If he sets the team up and they can’t do it then he needs to try something else and that can keep happening.

“You can see him trying to keep things basic in terms of how they set up but it’s not working.

“The confidence is very low and they need that spark somewhere along the line.”

Things are made worse from a City point of view in assessing Brentford’s start to the season. Whilst Farke’s men finished 10 points ahead of the Bees in their Championship win, it is Thomas Frank’s side that have adapted to the harsh world of Premier League life quicker.

Taylor insists there’s no secret to their success. He merely sees a team with each individual knowing exactly what their role is.

“They play some lovely football - they’re organised and Thomas Frank has got them playing really well,” he said. “You can see what they’re trying to achieve - they want to win games of football.

“They’re very organised. They know where they need to drop in if they haven’t got the ball. When they attack they know which players can hurt the opposition.

“They sit in and wait against some of the bigger teams but I watched the Chelsea game on TV and they took it to them and could have won the game.

“Everyone knows what they are doing and they know who to trust on the ball.

“The teams they are playing against so far in the Premier League don’t expect it from them.

“Thomas Frank’s in-game management is excellent as well - I really enjoy watching him. If it’s not working then he will change it but he always makes sure the players know what he wants.”

The difference in the two sides is illustrated in the perception around their leading men up front. Whilst Teemu Pukki has toiled and fed off scraps, Ivan Toney is engaged in everything good Brentford do and a constant threat to whatever defence he is up against.

As a former striker himself, Taylor feels sympathy for Pukki and the role he is being asked to play at the moment.

“As a striker he has to rely on service and it doesn’t feel like they have got a creative player in the team at the moment that can open things up for Pukki,” he added.

“In the end Pukki can turn around and say ‘why should I make those runs?’

“Suddenly the ball might then come and he hasn’t made that run because he’s not expecting it.

“They have got to find a way to get him into games and offer a threat.”


One that got away

Rob Taylor could be regarded as ‘one that got away’ for Norwich City during his playing career.

After coming through the YTS scheme at Carrow Road having been spotted playing for Watton as a 16-year-old, he signed as a professional at 19. He went on to score 11 goals for City’s reserves in the 1989/90 season so it came as a surprise when the club decided to let him go.

“I’ve got really good memories from my time at Norwich until they said they were releasing me,” he said. “Tim Sheppard, Mike Walker and Keith Webb, who was my youth team coach at the time, they were a bit angry that I left the club and thought I deserved another deal as a pro.

“I went to Leyton Orient and my career went on from there.”

And an impressive career it was. A goal-laden spell at Brentford prompted speculation then Norwich boss Bruce Rioch was interested in bringing him back to the club. That never materialised and a move to Gillingham ensued where he scored 33 goals in 59 league starts.

This paved the way for a big-money move to Manchester City although the move didn’t work out prompting a move to Wolves where he also suffered a lack of game time before enjoying spells at QPR, Gillingham (again), Grimsby and Scunthorpe.

After bringing down the curtain on his playing career he got involved in local football managing Watton, Dereham, Diss and a spell at King’s Lynn Town.

However, he admits he isn’t desperate to get back involved in the local game.

“I’ve lost the love of local football, I must admit,” he said. “I managed Dereham and Diss and I had a little spell with King’s Lynn and the reserves there. I took over the first team when Biff (Darren Bloodworth) and Boony (Kevin Boon) left.

"The club was on its way down at the time but the club is doing really well now which is fantastic to see. It is a good club with good support and it’s great that they’ve managed to get further up the pyramid.”