Steven Taylor felt quietly optimistic. His team, Gulf United, were on a winning run and he was rather proud of the tactical trap he had set for their high-profile English opponents.
The consequent realisation that there would be no ambush in the warm desert air proved suitably brutal. “I remember thinking: ‘We’ll give Newcastle a good run for their money,’” he says from Dubai. “But we were 3-0 down after 20 minutes. Newcastle won 5-0 and put on a show. They were special. My boys were: ‘Wow.’”
Admittedly it was only a friendly but, after spending time with Eddie Howe and his…
