Taylor relishing Toon return

Published Nov. 25, 2010 7:15 a.m. ET

foxsports

Taylor is set to make his first start in over 10 months for the Magpies after a shoulder problem in pre-season followed the knee injury he sustained in January. The former England Under-21 international will be thrust into the firing line alongside Sol Campbell against Chelsea at St James' Park on Sunday. Magpies boss Chris Hughton has been forced to make changes with first-choice duo Fabricio Coloccini and Mike Williamson beginning three-game bans for their respective clashes with Johan Elmander. And Taylor, who is still on the transfer list and out of contract in the summer after talks over a new deal broke down, is determined to make a positive impression. "I'm available for selection. I'm fit, and I've bided my time for the past few games. Now I'm hoping to get my chance, he told reporters. "All you can do it wait for your chance and wait for the gaffer to pick you and if I do get my chance I'll look forward to it. I want to do my best for this club. "We've got fantastic defenders at the club and that's been proved with Fabricio and Mike doing well this season. "Playing with Sol would be fantastic. We played in the reserves against Man City last week and I had a good partnership with him in a 1-0 win, so it would be good if we get the opportunity." Meanwhile, Magpies captain Kevin Nolan has warned that they may have to adopt a more cautious 4-5-1 formation when they tackle the champions. Nolan said: "When we're at home, people want to see us go 4-4-2 and attack teams and give it our all. It just doesn't work in the Premier League - Man United, Arsenal and Chelsea don't do it. "There's loads of ups and downs. We've got to make sure we play a system so players out on the wings get the crosses in. "It doesn't say that because we're Newcastle United we have to play 4-4-2 because we've been an exciting team down the years. "We've tried to get away from that. We're trying to make a much more solid Newcastle. We're not saying we're going to be better, but in three or four years, we'll see a progression. "Hopefully, we'll see a progression from two years ago, when we were playing flowing football and getting beat doing it. "I'd prefer to let Chris make his decisions and we, as a team, do whatever he says."