Gary Gardner Biography

Name :

Gary Gardner

Nationality :
English

Date of Birth :
26/06/1992

Height :
0' NaN" (0cm)

Weight :
0st 0lbs (0.0kg)

Squad Number :
38

Position :
Striker

Gary Gardner had to wait a long time for his 2010-11 season to get going - but the highly-rated midfielder crammed plenty in to the final five months.

An anterior cruciate ligament [ACL] injury sustained in December 2009 brought Gardner's rapid progress to a standstill.

But, when the younger brother of former Villa star Craig was ready to return, he made a stunning comeback.

The Solihull-born ace's first official appearance of last term came as a substitute in a 3-0 win over Birmingham City in the Barclays Premier Academy League on January 8 - though Gardner well and truly announced he was back 48 hours later on an astonishing evening in Hinckley.

It was Gardner who set the ball rolling for Villa reserves' stunning 10-1 demolition of Arsenal, firstly catching out Gunners goalkeeper James Shea to break the deadlock before scoring another from the penalty spot and supplying the ammunition for Andreas Weimann and Jonathan Hogg strikes.

He netted three more times for the second string in the final stages of the season - against Wolves, Liverpool and West Bromwich Albion - as well as twice for the U18s against Leicester and Reading.

Arguably the most coveted of Villa's Academy starlets, Gardner's stock has risen in the eyes of the first team coaching staff.

In fact, the midfielder spent the last few weeks of the season with the first team squad where he trained alongside the club's established stars on a daily basis and earned a place in the travelling party for several top-flight games.

International recognition came Gardner's way in March when he represented England U19s in a 3-0 friendly defeat against Holland.

The 2009-10 campaign started explosively for the midfielder before coming to a frustrating and premature end with his cruciate ligament injury.

Gardner skippered the youth team and was on fire in front of goal, finding the net 14 times.

His finest moments included a hat-trick in the FA Youth Cup third round win over Rochdale.

He also made great strides at reserve level in the early part of the season and even set up a goal for his brother Craig in a 1-1 second string draw against Wolves.