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USL North Carolina FC

Raleigh Native DJ Taylor Returning to NCFC for Fourth Straight Season

January 6, 2020 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
North Carolina FC News Release


CARY, N.C. - DJ Taylor, a Raleigh native and product of the North Carolina FC Youth Academy, has signed a new contract to return for his fourth consecutive season with NCFC, the club announced Monday. The transaction is pending league and federation approval, and no further details were disclosed, per club policy.

Taylor, 22, is entering his fifth season at the pro ranks and is coming off a career season in 2019 at right back under NCFC head coach Dave Sarachan. Named NCFC's Defensive Player of the Year, Taylor led the team in minutes played, logging 3,123 minutes across all competitions as he made 37 appearances and 35 starts, scored one goal and recorded six assists in 2019.

"We're very pleased to have DJ returning to us," Sarachan said. "He amassed the most minutes of anybody on our team, which tells you a lot about him - not only from a soccer sense but from a physical sense in terms of how he prepares and takes care of himself. DJ showed a lot of progress in terms of being more aggressive getting forward and understanding the relationships he's built with other defenders on our backline. He's becoming more of a complete player."

The athletic and quick-thinking Taylor proved to be a versatile weapon for Sarachan's team last season, as he made substantial contributions both offensively and defensively. Taylor's 33 chances created ranked fourth on NCFC and were the most by a defender, while he led the team in tackles (59) and tackles won (39) while finishing second in interceptions (33) to help NCFC record its best defensive record (1.09 goals allowed per match) since 2011.

A leading example of NCFC's youth-to-pro movement, Taylor signed an academy contract with the NCFC first team in 2015 at the age of 17, becoming the second player from the NCFC Academy to do so.

After playing abroad with CF Torre Levante of the Tercera Division in Spain from 2015-2016, Taylor returned to the club he grew up with in 2017. Following an impressive showing in NCFC's midseason friendly against Swansea City AFC of the English Premier League, Taylor signed a contract through the 2017 season and appeared in two matches.

The 2018 season saw Taylor become a mainstay in the NCFC lineup, as he played in 32 USL Championship matches for 2,742 minutes, making 31 starts. Under Sarachan, Taylor became one of NCFC's most reliable players in 2019, appearing in 37 of the team's 38 competitive matches. As part of Taylor's evolution as a player, the 5'9" outside back became increasingly involved in NCFC's attack and notched his first professional goal in the group's 1-0 win over the Florida Soccer Soldiers in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

Across all competitions, Taylor has played in 74 matches, made 71 starts, scored one goal and recorded six assists over 6,225 minutes of action for NCFC since 2017.

Taylor joins Steven Miller, Ben Speas, Nazmi Albadawi, Sam Brotherton, Alex Comsia, Caleb Duvernay, Robert Kristo, Graham Smith, Conor Donovan, Pecka, Hadji Barry and Alex Tambakis on the list of players confirmed for the 2020 season, as the club continues to negotiate with additional players.

Season tickets for North Carolina FC's 2020 season are on sale now. Click here to learn more about season tickets or call the Coastal Credit Union Box Office at 919-459-8144 to speak with a ticket representative.

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