Wales international Neil Taylor is out of contract at Aston Villa this summer and has growing interest from clubs in Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia; Villa have not ruled out discussing new terms but Taylor is intrigued by playing abroad
Saturday 8 May 2021 09:56, UK
Istanbul Basaksehir are interested in signing Aston Villa full-back Neil Taylor.
The 32-year-old's contract at Villa Park expires this summer and he is free to speak to foreign clubs.
Villa have not ruled out offering him new terms but prefer to wait until the end of the season to make decisions on the futures of their players.
Taylor has made just one Premier League appearance this season and three more in the Carabao Cup, and Villa are said to be looking in the market for a new left-back this summer.
Several clubs in Saudi Arabia and Qatar are also monitoring Taylor's situation - and the Wales international is understood to be keen to explore his options abroad.
Basaksehir are expected to make him an offer following the end of the Islamic month of Ramadan, which is May 12, while Trabzonspor are also keen.
Taylor is one of few players of South Asian origin playing at the top level in England. His mother is from Bengal in India.
The interest in Taylor is the latest development in the most remarkable month for the South Asians in football movement in this country, with Sky Sports News leading the coverage.
We exclusively revealed Sunderland Sikh-Punjabi twins Amar and Arjun Singh Purewal would be making history at the home of English football this week
Last week, we revealed Sporting Khalsa were set to earn promotion to Step 4 of non-League, meaning subject to ratification, the West Midlands side will become the first club borne out of the South Asian community to play in the eighth tier of the modern-day pyramid.
The news came after Leicester City midfielder Hamza Choudhury was serialised in a comic book about his identity, upbringing and Bangladeshi-Grenadian heritage, as well as his faith.
A day earlier, Gareth Southgate met with fans group Apna England, the first time a serving England boss has sat down and directly engaged with a South Asian-led Three Lions supporters' group.
Bournemouth full-back Dinesh Gillela last week captained the Cherries' U21 side to Central League Cup success, and Arjan Raikhy notched two assists in a 6-1 win over Newcastle to help Aston Villa into the last four of the FA Youth Cup.
Fellow British-Punjabi footballer Dilan Markanday was also in fine form, rounding off the scoring for Spurs' U23 side in a 4-1 win over Liverpool at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Manchester United starlet, Zidane Iqbal, fresh from penning his first professional contract, has picked up where he left off after a brief lay-off, scoring three goals in his last two U18 games, including a wonderful solo effort against Wolves.
Sky Sports News also revealed Birmingham Women academy prospect Layla Banaras was launching a campaign to better prepare Muslim athletes for fasting during Ramadan. Banaras, 15, who trains four times a week, worked with Birmingham City and club nutritionist Isobel Chotham to produce a Ramadan nutrition guide and meal planner.
Official Birmingham City supporters' group Blues 4 All last month worked directly with the club to mark the festival of Vaisakhi, with the Punjabi Rams fans group doing the same with fellow Sky Bet Championship side Derby County.
Sky Sports News also exclusively revealed Bhups and Sunny Singh Gill were to become the first British South Asian match officials ever to preside over the same Championship game, with the pair making history at Ashton Gate when Bristol City hosted Nottingham Forest.
For more stories, features and videos, visit our groundbreaking South Asians in Football page on skysports.com and stay tuned to Sky Sports News and our Sky Sports digital platforms.
