Long-time Bristol City defender Taylor Moore is on the verge of signing for rivals Bristol Rovers according to reports.
The 27-year-old has been without a club since leaving French second-division side Valenciennes in April. Les Athéniens recruited Moore on a free transfer last summer from Bristol City after two successive loans away from Ashton Gate to Shrewsbury Town and Hearts.
Gas have already made moves to improve their defence with the reported signing of Dan Ellison from Chippenham Town after a poor season in preventing goals, conceding 68 in the league season which ranked them 20th in that table.
According to journalist Pete O’Rourke, Matt Taylor’s side have agreed on a deal with the player to come to the Memorial Stadium, and a medical for Moore is taking place today (Wednesday, 26 June). Rovers will be the fifth club he has played for in League One, having also appeared for Salop, Blackpool, Southend United and Bury.
His last season in the third tier was for the Shropshire side, where he made 48 appearances across all competitions as they finished 12th place with 21 losses in the division in 2022/23.
The Pirates have beat out fellow League One competitors for the centre-back’s signature according to other reports, including Wycombe Wanderers, Wigan Athletic and Barnsley. Featuring 22 times for Valenciennes in Ligue 2 last season, the defender secured seven clean sheets across all competitions but did not feature for the club after February.
It has not been his first spell in mainland Europe, with his career starting out at RC Lens between 2014 and 2016, making 45 appearances for the club alongside regular features in the England youth setups. The Walthamstow-born player was in the West Ham United set-up before being scooped up by Etaples and later the Pas-de-Calais side.
Writer’s View
Taylor Moore is a good signing for Bristol Rovers. The defence was a weak point across last season, so having a defender with plenty of League One experience will be helpful. His second spell in France did not work out for him so a move back to England is probably the best choice.
Having a club he can be settled at is probably the best way to get quality out of him, with the various loans he made whilst at Bristol City disrupting any rhythm he could have created. He is strong in the air as well, winning 64.5% of duels across the Ligue 2 season.
