 Gardner playing for Aston Villa in 2012 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Gary Gardner[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 29 June 1992 | ||
| Place of birth | Solihull, England | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[2] | ||
| Playing position | Central midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Aston Villa | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2005–2011 | Aston Villa | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2011– | Aston Villa | 16 | (0) |
| 2011 | → Coventry City (loan) | 4 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2007–2008 | England U17 | 6 | (0) |
| 2008–2010 | England U19 | 2 | (1) |
| 2010–2011 | England U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2011– | England U21 | 5 | (2) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 17:58, 19 May 2013 (UTC).
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 23:45, 29 February 2012 (UTC) | |||
Gary Gardner (born 26 June 1992)[2] is an English footballer who plays as a central midfielder forAston Villa. A product of the Aston Villa Academy, Gardner spent a brief loan spell at Coventry City in 2011 and has made a number of appearances at different international levels for England. He is the younger brother of current Sunderland midfielder and former Aston Villa team-mate Craig Gardner.
Club career
Aston Villa
Early career
Gardner started his career at Aston Villa with older brother, Craig, but before he could even make an appearance for the under-18s, he was forced out with an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained in December 2009. He later returned from injury and became an important member of Aston Villa's under-18 and reserve sides.[3]
Gardner scored a brace in Aston Villa reserves' 10–1 win over Arsenal on 10 January 2011, firstly catching out Gunners' goalkeeper James Shea to break the deadlock before scoring another from the penalty spot. He also claimed assists for Andreas Weimann and Jonathan Hogg's goals.[4][5] The midfielder made his unofficial début for Aston Villa's first team in a pre-season friendly, coming on as a substitute for captain Stiliyan Petrov in the 2011 Barclays Asia Trophy final loss to Chelsea.[6]
He also represented Aston Villa in the inaugural season of the NextGen series, a European competition similar in format to the UEFA Champions League for younger footballers to compete in. During the group stage, Gardner scored single goals against Fenerbahçe[7] and Rosenborg.[8] In Villa's last group match, Gardner scored all three goals in a 3–0 victory over Ajax.[9] On 25 January, he scored a last minute equaliser in the quarter-final match against Marseille; Villa went on to lose the tie 2–1 in extra time.[10] Gardner's six goals made him the competition's joint second-highest goalscorer that year and the highest scoring midfielder, alongside Rosenborg's Mushaga Bakenga and Betinho ofSporting CP.
Coventry City (loan)
On 24 November 2011, Gardner joined Coventry City on an initial one-month loan deal.[11] Two days later, he scored just 9 minutes into his début for the club in a 2–1 defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion.[12] After making just four appearances for the Sky Blues in the Championship, Gardner was recalled from his loan spell by his parent club on 21 December.[13]
First Team
On 31 December 2011, Gardner made his first league appearance for Villa in a 3–1 away win at Chelsea. He came off the bench as a substitute for Marc Albrighton in the 78th minute.[14] He came off the bench once again on 7 January 2012 as Villa beat Bristol Rovers in the FA Cup Third Round.[15] On 21 January 2012, Gardner made his first start for Villa in a 3–2 win away at Wolverhampton Wanderers.[16] Gardner maintained his place in the team as the season progressed due to major injury concerns and the illness of captain Stiliyan Petrov.
On 22 August 2012, Gardner suffered another anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in his right knee – the same injury that kept him out in for a year in 2009. The injury would keep him out of action for up to 8 months.[16] Gardner returned to the Villa first team as an unused substitute against Chelsea on 11 May 2013 and made his playing comeback on the final day of the season against Wigan.
International career
Gardner has played for England at numerous international levels, including Under-17s, Under-18s, Under-20s and the Under-21s.
On 10 November 2011, Gardner came on as a sub, replacing Jason Lowe in the 62nd minute, and scored his first two goals for the England under-21s againstIceland under-21s
