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“[…] I can speak German. I’m a German citizen through my mom, Stephanie Taylor… We go over there every summer with my dad, Bertil Taylor. I played with a club named Hertha Berlin in Germany this year…”
Gifted 15-year-old Speyside High goalkeeper Makaya Taylor helped his school claim the 2023 Tobago Intercol title—and he is only just getting started!
He took time off to speak with Wired868 one-on-one about his future plans:
What is your date of birth?
The 23rd of May 2008.
What is your hometown?
My hometown is Castara, Tobago. I’ve lived there my whole life.
What is something most people do not know about you?
I can speak German. I’m a German citizen through my mom, Stephanie Taylor. Because she’s German, I’m allowed to have German citizenship. We go over there every summer with my dad, Bertil Taylor. I played with a club named Hertha Berlin in Germany this year.
What makes you stand out as a player?
I’m very technical for my age. I’m just 15 years old, but I keep up with the other players who are older than me.
How do you prepare yourself before games?
Before games, I stretch a lot. Every morning before school, at least three days before a game, I do a lot of stretching. Mentally, I just think about all the scenarios that could happen and what would be the best decisions.
How would you describe yourself as a person?
I would describe myself as easygoing. I’m a kind person, I don’t really like to insult other people. I’m just normal.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
I like fishing, surfing, camping, and playing football. Sometimes I like to go hiking. I like the outdoors.
What pushes you to succeed?
I want to repay my parents for giving me a lot of effort, trying to get me to make it. They have invested a lot in me—investing in all my gears, investing a lot of time too, carrying me to training, sending me to Trinidad to train; a lot of things.
They gave me opportunities to train with clubs in Germany, so I just want to repay what they have done for me.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
Who is your favourite player?
Nobody particularly, but I like [Manuel] Neuer as a sweeper keeper. I like [Thibaut] Courtois, too. And I like Manchester City because of their goalkeepers. I like Ederson and I love his distribution—that’s something I really want to work on in the future, to have proper distribution as good as his.
How did you start playing football?
I started playing football at the Castara Government Primary School. They put me in the goal once and I just loved it ever since.
Due to Covid, I stopped playing for a while, but Ryan Stuart from Brother Ry’s Football Academy got me back into football, and here I am now. He was my most important coach for getting me back into football.
What was your best moment in football so far?
I have a lot of good memories. Probably when I was playing for my primary school and I saved some penalties to help win the match and my team celebrated me! That was my favourite moment; my first big moment actually.
What was your most challenging moment in football so far?
When I [went] to Scarborough Secondary, I made a lot of mistakes in Intercol, which caused the team to lose. That was my most challenging moment.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
How do you handle the disappointments that can come when playing football?
Back then, I used to think about it a lot, but now I don’t really do that. Now I just think about the mistakes during the match—what I could have done better—and then I just move on. If I dwell on it for too long, it will just get to me.
What is your ambition in the game? How far do you hope to go?
I hope to play football professionally in Europe. That would be the easiest option for me because of my German passport. I just want to play professional football.
How do you balance academics with your commitment to football?
It’s hard, but after training I do a lot of studying and homework. I finish all my homework on weekends. If I have a free day off from training, I will do all my homework on that day.
How has your season been?
I think I played very well. A lot of coaches from different schools are interested in me coming to Trinidad to play.
What do you enjoy about the SSFL? And what would you change?
The competitiveness and just the atmosphere of all the fans being around and cheering you on. I can’t think of anything that could be improved really. Maybe if all the matches could be filmed instead of just a few.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
Knowing where you are now, do you have any advice you would give your younger self?
I would tell my younger self, like when I was playing in primary school leagues, to make sure to exercise every morning, train hard, stretch often and take the games seriously—because I did not know how much talent I had before.
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