Quick Kicks: Matt Taylor, TuS Koblenz Striker

Drafted fourth overall by Kansas City in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft, Matt Taylor spent four injury-riddled years in Major League Soccer, but managed to make a name for himself as a goalscorer while with Chivas USA.

After a short stint in lower American leagues, Taylor has resumed his career at TuS Koblenz and is starting to turn some heads in the German second division. Despite only starting 13 games, Taylor has notched seven goals and is tied for the team’s lead in scoring.

Nickname: Full name, Matthew Stephen Taylor, but almost everybody calls me Matt. Along the way I have been called Matty, Tay Tay, and some of my personal favorites have been given in the last few years, Fatty and Rat Taylor.

Club supported: Growing up, soccer was not that accessible in the United States. The only games that I would watch on TV were Champions League games and the occasional Premier League game. I have never been a supporter of one team in particular. I enjoy watching quality soccer, and today I really like to watch any of the top English teams or Barcelona.

Strengths: I am a hard working player that plays for the team. I have pretty good speed and I am capable with both feet. My biggest strength as a soccer player is the ability to score goals or help the team create goals. My decision making and execution has been very strong this year in front of goal. Within 30 yards of the goal is where I am able to do my best work.

Weaknesses: I know that I have weaknesses in my game. Over the past couple of years I have really worked hard to strengthen parts of my game. My ability to make big plays consistently in front of goal was a bit of a weakness when I came out of college. That is something that I have really worked on in the past couple of years and I have seen some drastic improvements. Lately I have been working on my game further away from goal. Holding the ball up for my teammates, positioning both offensively and defensively, and staying concentrated and focused for the entire game. Next week, next month, or next year I am sure that I will be trying to overcome other weaknesses in my game, but that is why the sport is great.

Soccer heroes: I have always liked watching attacking players that make the game look easy. I have always enjoyed watching Ronaldo, the man is simply amazing, and I always find myself rooting for him after all he has gone through.

Career highlight to date: Tough question, I think at this point I have two. The first was the National Championship with UCLA. We were such a close group of guys and that was the most fun that I have ever had playing the game. The second would be this year, in the derby match against Kaiserslautern. It is the biggest match of the year for our team and we won 5-0 at home and I had a hand in all five goals.

MLS compared to Germany: Very vague question which could really take hours to answer and I wouldn't really know where to start. Structure of the league, quality of the play, style of play, atmosphere, economics? I think to even try to compare the two is difficult. The Bundesliga has been a successful and popular league for so many years. The MLS is a new league, surviving and longevity are the main objectives.

Biggest influence: I would say that my family has always been a big influence in what I do. I grew up with supportive parents and three competitive brothers. I think I developed a strong competitive spirit growing playing sports with my brothers. My parents were willing to do anything for us boys and they provided us with the necessary means to be successful in whatever we chose. I am really thankful for that.

Tunes on the IPod: I listen to just about everything. There is a place for music in every part of my life. Lately I have had on rotation- 80's mix, Bob Marley, The Presets, MGMT, Cut Copy, Classic Rock Mix, some of the new pop and R&B, I have even found a few German songs that I have grown fond of.

Dream car: I am not the biggest car guy. I saw on the Yahoo! front page a while back a new car that flies. Drive it to the airport, extend the wings, and fly at a range of 700 miles on normal unleaded gas. I think this is close to a dream car for me. I also like the Aptera, again spotted on Yahoo! They have a hybrid coming out that can just about drive from California to Germany on one tank of gas.

Something we don’t know about you: For most of the people that will read this, I am sure that there is a lot that you don't know about me. I am really an open guy and I like to share so there is not much that I keep to myself. If there is something that people don't know about me, I have a feeling it will stay that way.

In five years I will be: Well, jumping back to the last question, this might be something that you don't know about me. When I am done playing soccer, I am going to take some time off. I am going to live in a nice warm, tropical beach setting, somewhere south of California on the Pacific as far down as Central America. I am going to live life, surf, learn Spanish, fish, and enjoy the better things that were put on earth for us. Five years would fit my schedule nicely. I can play for the next four to five years and then make my majestic escape into the sunset.

Allen Ramsey, Goal.com

For more on American players playing in Europe go to Goal.com's Americans Abroad page