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I went from non-league football with Lincoln City to assisting Messi in front of Beckham

talksport.com, 1 August 2023, 11:55
It's not everyday you go from playing non-league football at Lincoln City to becoming Lionel Messi's teammate at Inter Miami.

That's the story of Finnish-forward Rob Taylor, who was born in Kuopio, a small city located in the eastern part of Finland.

The 28-year-old recently opened the scoring against Cruz Azul in a 2-1 victory in the MLS Leagues Cup.

Messi, however, stole the show on his debut with a sublime last-gasp free-kick right at the death as Inter Miami advanced.

Taylor and Messi's blossoming bromance would reach its peak in the second match they played together.

The former Nottingham Forest youth graduate netted twice, along with Argentina World Cup winner Messi in a 4-0 win over Atlanta United.

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Both had also provided an assist for one another, as co-owner David Beckham and the Inter Miami fans watched on in excitement.

"It's a dream come true," Taylor told Sky Sports on playing with Messi.

"I've watched him play all my life at the highest level, and now, to play with him and to be in the same team as him is crazy.

"You watch him train and play every day and try and learn from him.

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"His decision-making is unbelievable - I can't see him doing a wrong decision at all during the game or training, so you just want to try and learn.

"He comes to me and tells me how he wants me positioned in different situations."

Previously, Taylor primarily plied his trade in Nordic countries, and was a youth player with Jyvaskylan Jalkapalloklubi (JJK).

Nottingham Forest, Lincoln City and Barnet would follow, spending three years in England, before heading back to JJK at the age of 19.

He would later join Rovaniemen Palloseura (RoPS), netting 13 goals and provided five assists in 2016, before joining Swedish side AIK.

Finding game time limited, he would then head to Tromso in Norway, scoring eight goals and recorded six assists, before joining Brann, adding another 14 goals and 16 assists to his career tally.

With 22 goals and 22 assists to his name in Norway, it is from there where he made the leap to Florida.

To date he has five goals and assists for Inter Miami, and now gracing the pitch with Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.

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