"I have had surgery but I played the last three or four games for Olympic," says the 22-year-old, whose best premiership game was probably in Bay United's 2-0 victory over Team Wellington in round-robin play at David Farrington Park two summers ago.
However, Taye says he's feeling better than when he got injured after going under the knife.
The first-year Massey University nursing student arrived in New Zealand with his family from Khartoum, Sudan, in 2008.
He sees himself as a box-to-box central midfielder who is capable of falling back on defence.
Angell, he says, always knew he enjoyed his time with the team here and it was also good for his development as a player.
Taye had 10 starts in 2015-16 in an environment where it is up to players to show their worth to Angell to earn selection when training for next season starts on September 14.
"I'm looking forward to the competition, so I don't mind a bit of a battle for places because that's a good way for the whole team to improve."
He echoes the coach's sentiments that the onus is on the players to overcome that mental hurdle.
His passion for the game came from watching it with his father as a youngster.
Taye is committed to putting time and energy into becoming a professional either in New Zealand or Europe.
"I like to think I can distribute the ball and make a difference, whether it's defending or attacking."
He was always going to attend university but, as disappointing as the injury was, he believes everything happens for a reason and the surgery has opened new frontiers for him.
For Palezevic, it was an easy decision to return after missing the 2015-16 season due to a fractured foot.
The second-year Massey University student from Wellington says the consistency with which Bay United were making the playoffs spoke volumes.
He hopes they will make the cut again to clinch the crown as well as book a historic Oceania Champions League berth.
"We've always tripped up on the last hurdle but we should again be contenders for the OFC," says Palezevic.
The 20-year-old midfielder understandably struggles to put his finger on why they haven't crossed the line and suspects it probably has something to do with preparing a little better for the playoffs but emphasises Bay United have always had the quality and depth to accomplish that.
"It's a pretty hard question to answer," he says with a laugh. "It'll probably take that little extra push to get there."
Palezevic spent the past winter playing for the Greeks as well and mentored youngsters when not swotting.
"This is my fourth year with the team and Hawke's Bay is a lot warmer than here outside the life of football, too," he says. "It's not very favourable down here, unfortunately."
Palezevic says a rash of injuries to Olympic players made their winter campaign difficult.
"It's kind of led to a lot of inconsistent starting XIs with so many different players coming into the squad [due to injuries]," he says, relieved to have got through a season uninjured.
He and Taye will travel up and down together until such time as they finish their studies to settle in Napier after their tertiary exams.
"I'm a ball distributor and I generally play in the central midfield so I try to win the ball and keep possession for the team before supplying it to wingers and attacking midfielders."
