New Four Year Deal for Gabby

[glasses]

So let him leave for next to nothing and go out and spend another £8m + to replace him.  Don't offer him another contract of any substance and lose him so that we can recall Bowery...and slag the club off for not holding onto one of our most experienced players.  One of our few truely attacking threats capable of changing a game.

If you ignore the wage factor then that is how it may seem. £50k per week over four years would equate to £10.4m. Even if paid £6-7m to replace him with somebody on even half that, then financially it pretty much evens out and that's not even taking the potential sell-on value of any replacement into account. For what it's worth, if Gabby were to take a pay-cut and earn the same as most if the others in the squad then I would tolerate him as a squad-player.

Also, you describe a guy with 3 goals in 23 starts as a 'truely attacking threat'! Seriously?

He's a winger, not a centre forward. How many goals has he set up/been involved in?

I'll start off with arsenal and Liverpool away as two good places to go looking.

[Toronto Villa]

agreed. Also, while he can be criticised for his goal output, you're right he sets up quite a few, and his running off the ball plus the space he creates because defenders have to respect his speed does open things up for other players.

[Pete3206]

Good news if true. Who are Villa going to sign in the next couple of years that would be any better?

Sign Albrighton up as well

[pooligan]

Gabby has managed just 3 goals all season! I like him but sorry,no way is he worth a 4 year contract with that sort of record

[Ron Manager]

Good news, glad it looks like he'll be staying til he retires. I've said it before the day he retires and walks over to clap the Holte one last time is going to be so goddamn emotional.

Well he's no Johnny Dixon but has been here a long time and always try's his best. Thats why manager's play him. At his best under MON when he really was feared by opposition defenders. As long as its low money Im happy to see him stay.

[SoccerHQ]

He is still one of the few in our squad who has a big game mentality, Benteke is the other.

Over the years he's scored various derby winners for us and generally been the player who the top teams feared until Benteke came along.

Even this season he was the key player in beating Arsenal away and so nearly Liverpool. So two top 4 teams he's had great games against but clearly motivation is more of a problem against some of the lesser teams so he needs to be rotated more for these games. This Calum Robinson lad scoring for the reserves, anyone reckon he could become an alternative for Gabby next season? I doubt he's as quick but seems he's hardworking and can play across the forward line?

On balance I think he's worth a new deal but 4 years is a little generous. I suppose from the clubs viewpoints they'd prefer to give him a long term deal now and once he's in his 30s the deals will only be 1-2 years with probably a lower wage rather than say give him a 3 year deal now and have to negiotate in 18 months when he'll still be under 30.

[PeterWithesShin]

For anyone who might be interested, the last time he scored and we lost was Dec 1st 2010. The cup match at small heath.
Last time he scored in a league game we lost was Blackburn away, Sept 26th 2009.
In fact I can only find 6 league games he's scored and and we lost. And 3 of those were Manure (a 2007, h 2007 a 2009) and the other two were Liverpool away (2006) and his debut at Everton. And the other game we lost he scored in was Rapid Feckin' Vienna (2010)

[Goldie.7]

This should have a poll.

[supertom]

For anyone who might be interested, the last time he scored and we lost was Dec 1st 2010. The cup match at small heath.
Last time he scored in a league game we lost was Blackburn away, Sept 26th 2009.
In fact I can only find 6 league games he's scored and and we lost. And 3 of those were Manure (a 2007, h 2007 a 2009) and the other two were Liverpool away (2006) and his debut at Everton. And the other game we lost he scored in was Rapid Feckin' Vienna (2010)

It'd be lovely if we could lock him in a training ground with Messi for a couple of months in pre-season, and have him come back as a 30 goal striker. We might win the league!

[JUAN PABLO]

The thing is with Gabby, is that I think he's a lower half premier league player at best.Granted that makes him good enough for us at the moment.

However, is giving this type of player a long term, not inexpensive contract really the route we want to take?

I wouldn't mind keeping him as a squad player on around 20k a week tops.

this

[Isa]

He's a winger, not a centre forward. How many goals has he set up/been involved in?

I'll start off with arsenal and Liverpool away as two good places to go looking.

Firstly, we rarely ever play with wingers under Lambert, rather narrow wide-forwards. Secondly, we don't play 4-3-3 in every game anymore. In the games where we play 3-5-2 or 4-1-2-1-2, Gabby has nearly always been played as a CF.  Either way, the goalscoring onus on the positions he has been deployed in is greater than an orthodox winger. 

[PeterWithesShin]

And to further confuse, Gabby has missed 3 league home games this season. We won all of them.

[Toronto Villa]

And to further confuse, Gabby has missed 3 league home games this season. We won all of them.

Gabby needs space to be at his most effective. We have more space away from home because we are on the counter. At full speed and with running room there are few more devastating players. At home everything is more compressed and he struggles with that. In games where either we are leading and the opponents have to come to us he is very effective. But most teams at VP sit further back, restricting room and play on the counter which for Gabby limits his effectiveness.

[Isa]

And to further confuse, Gabby has missed 3 league home games this season. We won all of them.

Also, every single one of his assists this season have come away.

[ez]

Perhaps if he wasn't undroppable he'd deliver more.