Matt Taylor is not a new name for Fantasy Managers. A few seasons back he was offering outstanding value as a defender at Pompey, whilst playing and scoring regularly from a left midfield position. He’s since made that role his own at Bolton and unfortunately , the fantasy game organisers soon sorted their classifications accordingly. Taylor is a well and truly a midfielder now but he’s one that’s simmered under the radar for much of this season. That could change dramatically over the next month…

To this point Taylor’s return have been modest – 3 goals and 2 assists are fairly decent but given the fact that Bolton have demonstrated an increased attacking intent this season, it’s surprising that Taylor hasn’t blinked more brightly on our radars. So why the case for renewed interest?

Well for starters Bolton and Taylor have a prolonged run of fixtures that appear to lend themselves to improved returns (BLA ful wlv MCY WHM wig bur HUL sun). There’s little to fear from gameweeks 13-20 then, with City and Burnley away appearing to provide the most severe test. While we can’t bank on Bolton clean sheets during this run of games, we should see continued growth in the goals for column. That should see the likes of Kevin Davies and Matt Taylor up their fantasy output.

Taylor is a major player when it comes to Bolton’s reliance on set-pieces. Megson’s side are rivalled by very few teams when it comes to goals from deadball situations. Taylor’s delivery onto the heads and body parts of his team-mates, is going to be of major importance over the next few gameweeks. We should expect at least three or four assists in the nine week spell I’ve illustrated and I’d also expect a similar return on goals.

Right now the likes of Dunn and Dempsey may prove more popular mid-price midfield options with their double fixture in gameweek 13. However, once their run of fixtures stiffens – from gameweek 17 onwards, Taylor looks a strong alternative. Given Boton’s fixtures, team-mates Cohen and Lee could also offer value further down the price brackets.