Former England manager Graham Taylor yesterday dismissed claims that two Football Association members tried to cap the number of black players in the national team during his time in charge.

Taylor insisted he would never have stood for such a demand, after a new book claimed he had privately revealed the approach in conversation with an anti-racism campaigner.

The claim that the FA members approached Taylor is made in the new book Pitch Black: The Story of Black British Footballers, written by Emy Onuora, the brother of former Huddersfield, Swindon and Gillingham striker Iffy Onuora.

Onuora writes that former Birmingham striker and anti-racism campaigner Richie Moran spoke to Taylor at an event held in the 1999-2000 season by Watford Football Club.

Moran is quoted as saying: “Graham Taylor came up to me and said: ‘Look, I’m going to tell you something … I’m never going to admit it, I will be sued for libel.’ He said: ‘When I was manager of England I was called in by two members of the FA, who I won’t name …’ I volunteered two names. He said: ‘I’m not prepared to say, but I was told in no uncertain terms not to pick too many black players for the national side.’”

At that time, Taylor was manager of Watford, but he managed England from after the 1990 World Cup to November 1993.

Taylor said the claims in Onuora’s book had taken him “by complete surprise” and that he “had no FA people coming up to me and telling me which team to pick and to pick less black players.”

Taylor, now 70, told the Guardian he could not remember the conversation with Moran.

He said: “That is not me trying to evade it — and it also doesn’t mean I didn’t say it — but if anyone looks at my record with club and country it would be obvious to everyone anyway that I didn’t follow what was apparently said.

“If anyone looks at my record, I could never be accused of blocking the way for any black player.”

Anti-racism group Kick It Out chair Lord Herman Ouseley told the Evening Standard yesterday that he couldn’t recall Taylor making any such comments — the event was apparently related to the group’s 10th anniversary — but “those sorts of attitudes would have existed.”