Steven Taylor

Taylor was born in Greenwich, London to a family from Newcastle upon Tyne and moved back to the North East weeks later. He was raised in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside and attended Valley Gardens Middle School with future teammate Peter Ramage. Despite being based in the North-East, Taylor traveled south to the Midlands twice a week, to train on a Wednesday and play for Leicestershire-based junior side Anstey Nomads, until leaving the side at the age of fourteen under strict orders from members of Newcastle's youth staff. Taylor, then a striker, joined the Newcastle United youth academy after being scouted at Cramlington Juniors, where he played alongside Peter Ramage, and Wallsend Boys Club. At age thirteen, he was switched to defence. He played a key part in helping the U-17's win the old Premier Academy League U-17 title for the 2001–02 season. After finishing his GCSEs at Monkseaton High School, Taylor capped a fine season by joining the academy on a first-year scholarship and signed professional terms when he turned seventeen. The following season, he was sent on a month-long loan to Wycombe Wanderers where he played under his childhood hero Tony Adams and made his league debut in the old Second Division against Notts County in December 2003.

Newcastle United

Upon returning to Newcastle in the latter half of the season, the teenager was mostly shifting back and forth between the first team and reserves. On 25 March 2004, in the UEFA Cup Fourth Round second leg tie against Mallorca, he came on as a substitute for Andy O'Brien to make his first team debut and held the record as the Magpies' youngest debutant in European competition in the 2000s until it was broken by Andy Carroll in November 2006. Three days later, he made his Premier League debut against Bolton Wanderers and was in the starting eleven as in a less familiar right back role. His debut ended disappointingly as he was out-muscled by Henrik Pedersen in the build up that led to Bolton's match-winning goal. This was his only other appearance for the rest of the season, although he did make the bench on several occasions. The start of the 2004–05 season was disappointing, as Taylor had a long injury lay-off. He eventually came back to play 22 games for the club, starting 17. During this season, the teenager was largely remembered for a bizarre incident in the 2 April match against Aston Villa where he "saved" Darius Vassell's shot and went down clutching his chest. The referee promptly dismissed him for "deliberate handball" but it was overshadowed by the heated on-pitch argument between Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer which led to their dismissals and Newcastle going down to eight men. Because his dive was inconsequential (the game was beyond…

In November 2001, Taylor captained the England Under-16 team at the Walkers International Tournament and was voted the player of the tournament. The following summer, he captained the U-17's to win the Nationwide Tournament, his first international title. In March 2003, the England Under-17 team qualified for the European Championships, and in the match against Slovakia, Taylor scored his first two goals for England. He also played in 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship along with future under-21 teammates James Milner, Andrew Taylor and Martin Cranie and started in all the group matches despite being one of the youngest squad members at age seventeen. Following a good showing in Dubai despite England's dismal results, Taylor made his England under-21 debut on 17 February the next year in a 3–2 win over the Netherlands. In June 2005, Taylor represented England Under-20 at the Toulon International Tournament, where England finished in third place. On 6 September 2005, he scored his first under-21 goal, against the German side. He also scored two goals against the Poland Under-21s in October 2005. During the 2007 U-21 European Championship qualifying, Taylor began to establish himself as a regular and played a key role in their run to the semifinals at the tournament. He missed the first match through suspension due to his red card in the play-offs against Germany but played the other two group games and the semi-final where he was unable to stop the late equaliser after going…

Gulf United

On 23 January 2022, Taylor was announced as the head coach of Gulf United in the United Arab Emirates. On 26 May, Taylor managed his side to a 3–1 win over Fleetwood United in the UAE Third Division League play-off final, achieving promotion to the UAE Second Division League. After gaining promotion in their first season, Gulf United went on to become champions of the UAE Second Division League, winning promotion in a history making season which saw them become the first team to achieve back-to-back promotions in the history of UAE football. Taylor praised the club stating "I've got good people upstairs who let me just concentrate on the football." On 31 August 2023, Gulf United announced that Taylor had left the club by mutual agreement.

Palm City

On 19 April 2024, it was announced on social media that Taylor had agreed to join Palm City. After winning promotion with the club, Taylor decided to leave his position.

Rimal Al Sahra

Taylor spent a single season with newly established Rimal Al Sahra where he secured promotion to the UAE Second Division League.

Desert Falcon

On 29 June 2026, Taylor was announced as the first head coach of Desert Falcon in the UAE Third Division League.