Town boss Mick McCarthy says striker Paul Taylor should be fit enough to join in with the rest of the squad at the start of pre-season. The 25-year-old has been out of action since suffering a foot injury which eventually required surgery in only his third game for the Blues against Wolves in September, shortly after joining from Peterborough United for an initial fee of £1.5 million which could rise to £2.5 million.
McCarthy says the Liverpudlian is making progress and should be fine by the time pre-season training starts: "I would think so, the way he’s going.
"He’s been out kicking a ball. I would be very disappointed if he’s not. He’s got a long summer of rehabilitation in front of him, so he will be.”
While Taylor will be looking to put his injury problems behind him and get back into the Town side during 2013/14, midfielder Jay Emmanuel-Thomas will be pushing to feature on a more regular basis, having been in and out of the team during this campaign.
Despite that, the Blues manager has been pleased with the 22-year-old since he came to the club: "He’s training well, he’s been involved.
"I have to say he’s been nothing but a model pro for me. He’s just trained all the time, even when he’s been out of the team.
"He’s seen me because he wants to play, which is fine, but he’s behaved himself impeccably and trained really well. He’s been a smashing kid.”
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