Tinkering Taylor has a problem up front

Graham Taylor has admitted trying to sign a new midfielder but judging from Wednesday's defeat of Aston Villa by French club Lille, he has trouble in attack.

Ipswich's Matt Holland is high on his wanted list yet it's up front that Taylor may have unexpected problems.

Fans were stunned that a threeman strike force of Darius Vassell, Marcus Allback and Peter Crouch lacked punch. However, Taylor has tried to reassure supporters, the players and chairman Doug Ellis that the InterToto Cup exit is 'not the end of the world'. Yet he may struggle to convince them that the 3-1 aggregate semi-final defeat was merely a pre-season hiccup.

Ellis looked distinctly unhappy after watching Villa lose 2-0 at home to miss out on backdoor qualification for the UEFA Cup that would have been worth a minimum of £500,000.

Taylor insisted the competition was not an 'ideal scenario' for pre-season preparation and made a plea for people to retain a sense of proportion.

He said: 'It was a defeat and there is no point denying that it hurts. This is why I have reservations about taking part. 'It is a risk you take because it offers a route to Europe but it is also part of our pre-season preparations and has to be regarded in that context.