The Argentine forward and Finnish forward had a strong connection.
The last thing most people would assume when they hear the name Robert Taylor is that he is a Finnish player born in Kuopio, a small city in eastern Finland.
But for the Inter Milan football player who has become Lionel Mei’s new ally in the Argentine’s debut match in Major League Soccer, that is the reality.
He watched from the bench during Mei’s first match in the United States as Robert Taylor started the scoring against Cruz Azul. The Argentine then ensured Inter Milan’s triumph in the dying seconds.
The connection between the Argentine and the Finn reached its peak in Mei’s second match. Mei scored two goals and Taylor scored two in a resounding 4-0 victory over Atlanta United. Furthermore, each of them gave aid to the other. David Beckham and Inter Milan supporters couldn’t be happier with the new partnership that has developed on the field.
Robert Taylor was born in Finland but has lived in England for a while.
Hi route to becoming Mei’s Inter Miami attacking partner has been rather peculiar. Before joining Inter Milan in February of last year, the Finn had never played football outside of the Nordic region except for a brief stint in England.
Taylor played for the Jyväkylán Jalkáраlloklubi (JJK) youth team from the time he was a young player till he turned into a youth player.
However, the Finn also held two positions in England, playing for Lincoln for two years and Nottingham Foret for one. Of course, both of them were members of the club’s youth team.
At the age of 19, Taylor left England in 2013 to go back to JJK, the club where he had grown up.
Taylor’s innovation in Finland and his leap to Sweden
Taylor had a very successful relationship with JJK upon returning to his native country. As a result, the striker piqued the interest of Roväniemen Palloeura, also known as RoPS, a top-tier Finnish football team.
Robert Taylor showed his development and gave a standout performance for the team in the Finnish Premier Division. He particularly stood out in 2016, scoring 13 goals and dishing out five assists during the season.
A significant event in Northwest that caught Inter Miami’s attention
Taylor was signed by AIK Solna, one of the premier clubs in Allvenkän, Sweden’s top division, after his fantastic performance at RoPS. The player, though, hardly played for the Swedish club before moving on to Tromo in Northwest.
After working for Tromo for two seasons in the Norwegian Premier Division, Robert Taylor secured an uncontested position within the club’s strategy. In his two campaigns, he scored eight goals and collected six assists.
Taylor’s best period was still to come, though. The Finn departed Tromo to join Brn, a Norwegian team competing in the top division in the country, and he displayed a special number that piqued Inter Miami’s interest. Robert Taylor scored 14 goals and distributed 16 assists in two periods.
Taylor took the big step to leave the Nordic country for the first time since he was a young player after his fantastic four years in Norway, where he scored 22 goals and provided 22 assists. After playing in Finland, Norway, and Sweden, he now has his chance in Major League Soccer.
Taylor secured a spot in the starting eleven during his first season at Inter Milan, scoring five goals while dishing out nine assists. The Finn was already an employee of the MLS team before Mei or Sergio Buquet arrived in Miami.
