Taylor unlikely to take Exeter City job long-term

Matt Taylor says it is unlikely he will take charge of Exeter City in the long term.

The 44-year-old returned as interim manager until the end of the season on Tuesday, leading the Grecians to a 1-1 draw with Burton Albion.

Taylor, who managed the side for more than four years from 2018, has come in after his successor Gary Caldwell left to take on the vacant head coach job at Wigan Athletic.

"It suits all parties," Taylor told BBC Radio Devon

"Any longer then the wife might have divorced me. I've got three young children, and they are young and they're a handful, and we've got a life in the south of Sheffield.

"But there's a lot of people in the club who I care about, and if I can help in any way for two months I will do.

"When I left I thought I left the club in a strong position and I'd like to leave it in a strong position when I go this time, if I do go."

• Taylor returns as Exeter boss until end of season
• Wigan appoint Caldwell as head coach for second time

Taylor succeeded long-serving boss Paul Tisdale almost eight years ago and led City to second place in League Two in 2022.

He moved on in October that year to join then-Championship side Rotherham United but was sacked after 13 months with the Millers in the relegation places.

He went on to spend a year in charge at Bristol Rovers before losing his job in mid-December 2024.

In that time Exeter have established themselves as a League One side - should they stay up this season their fifth successive campaign in the third tier would be their longest stint at that level of football since the late 1970's and early 1980's.

The club's off-field infrastructure has also changed drastically in that time - a new training facility has been built while a new stand at St James Park was officially opened days after Taylor left.

"This club means an awful lot to me. The staff who are here mean an awful lot to me," he added.

"It wasn't on my radar, I've watched from afar and admired from afar in terms of what Exeter have done for a period of time.

"But I got a phone call from someone I really rate and someone I really trust and someone who felt I was the person to come in and help the team, which is the most important thing, until the end of the season.

"I was at the training ground yesterday and that was surreal, because I had left before that was in place.

"So to go into a facility like that and to see it first-hand was just incredible, because I know that the hard work which went into to getting that even planned, let alone built, and now it's in in product, so it was absolutely incredible.

"The provision the players have got is second to none for League One, let alone Exeter City, and I'm looking forward to you know working well in that environment for next two months."

Exeter have not won in eight games - drawing six of those matches - and they have slipped to 15th in League One, six points above the relegation zone.

It comes as the fan-owned club deals with financial issues caused by a major overspend last season - the Exeter City Supporters' Trust has lent the club around £600,000 and the playing budget could be slashed by as much as £1.5m in the summer.

But Taylor is hopeful he can leave the club in the best possible shape come the end of the season - they travel to Barnsley on Saturday before back-to-back home games against the top two in Cardiff City and Lincoln City.

"I'm a little bit in the dark in terms of why we're in the situation we are," he said.

"It always seems to be a such a well-run club in terms of a financial aspect, it's had to be because of the trust ownership

"The key is what's next and what next season looks like, but we can only concentrate on next season once we get through this season."