Carles Gil - loaned out again

[pauliewalnuts]

Cahill wanted first team football but was not ready for the level we were then at hence why he went to Bolton for a few years of relegation battles. Ideally we could have kept him to develop here but clearly he did not think it was in his interests to wait around.

If Gaz wasn't ready, I'm not sure Zat was, a player who kept him out but with much less potential. O'Neill messed-up and most of us thought so at the time.

Not to mention Curtis Davies, a worse player who we spent £10m on.

In his time here, he managed to look like the most consistently scared defender I've seen in a long time. He'd see the action moving towards him and look like a rabbit in the headlights.

I appreciate he was brave to say what he did after his debut, but it probably wasn't a great idea, as it followed him around for a long time after.

[pauliewalnuts]

The defence under MON was a great illustration of both his weaknesses and how we got into such a problem financially. To go out one season and buy a whole defence, then go out the next season and buy another one, was typical of his "scattergun", lazy, expensive approach to recruitment.

Buy enough players and eventually some will be good enough.

How's this look for a back four?

Shorey - Davis - Knight - Beye

*shudder*

[Ads]

That's £23 million in fees and over £6 million a year in wages.

[Monty]

His remit was to get into the Champions League, so he bought those players. Ouch.

[BoskoDjembaSalifou]

Sherwood has made a mistake here. Why can't people admit instead of making excuses for him?

Too weak? He played Grealish.
Not right for a relegation battle? Was involved in one with Elche.
Doesn't do it in training? Points aren't won in training sessions.
Manager just doesn't fancy him? He regularly plays Joe Cole and N'Zogbia, I'd be worried about his judgment.

Why can't you understand that you not agreeing with a decision doesn't make it a mistake?

As said stop comparing him to Grealish in terms of physical suitability if a rubbish comparison, Grealish isn't strong but he knows how to handle a kick, the evidence was that Gil hasn't picked that up yet.
Experience of a relegation battle, I never said anything about that, I did comment on experience in English football though, which he didn't get playing for Elche.
Points aren't won in training sessions but places in the team are.
Sherwood's judgement got us the points we needed to stay up, given that his judgement so far has proven to be good enough.

The worst thing is, I like Gil, I want to see more of him so this argument means I'm taking a position I don't particularly hold but I just can't get my head round people slagging the manager (who has just kept us up when we'd looked dead in the water) off because he hasn't selected a player who's made 7 appearances for us.

If he'd dropped Benteke or Delph and not had them in the squad at all I'd be with you questioning his thinking and I understood why people kept calling for Bent to get a place back (even if I disagreed with them) but Gil we have almost no point of reference and yet him not playing more is a mistake that Sherwood should be held to account for, really?

Anything that leads to N'Zogbia starting is a mistake!

How do you know Gil can't take a kick? After all, he's only played 7 times for us
Premier League experience is overrated. It didn't seem to be a factor on his debut vs Liverpool, or when he scored that goal vs Bournemouth, or when he set up the goal vs Chelsea. Surely we should priotise good players over experienced ones?
If Joe "knackered after 5 seconds minutes" Cole does more than Gil in training, I'd be very surprised.
Even the most successful managers make mistakes!

Those 7 appearances are all the fans have to judge him on though. No-one can deny he looked really good under Lambert, that's why it's weird he's not been involved.

[Hookeysmith]

In the Stoke game Gil on several occasions took some player on and lost the ball resulting in them having a very quick breakaway. On at least a couple of occasions Sherwood was a screaming at him to track back yet it did not happen. I think there and right then the die was cast. Nzogbia does at least give the impression that he works for the team - although reality is that he often is chasing back after he has lost the ball running down a blind alley
When I have seen him with the other player during warm up he never looks like he is either happy or integrated with the squad
Its a shame as I think he has real talent

[Toronto Villa]

While Gil didn't play well vs Stoke that should have been a conversation Sherwood had with him afterwards to set new expectations. If after that Gil didn't respond in training then it's on him. The dye shouldn't have been cast in that game and it really wasn't as he was brought in vs Albion and appreared on the bench for a few games after that. Either Sherwood gave up or Gil progressively got worse in training. But something happened where the manager decided he wasn't someone to go to battle with in a relegation fight.

[Gareth]

When you are a crap team there's no room for passengers, I remember that Stoke game & he definitely didn't seem keen on tracking back.  He might create a chance or score a goal but playing with 10 men defensively will cost you more points than it will win over the season.  The manager has to trust the 11 on the pitch to do what they are told, if he can't then parting of the ways is for the best.

He's only been in our league for 4 months so he might come good but I come back to the fact you don't get great players for 3m very often.

[PeterWithesShin]

I doubt there's any Villa player who didn't have an absolute stinker at least once last season. Would be very strange to bomb just one player out for it. Obviously the Stoke game didn't help his cause but you have to think there's more to it than just that.

[Risso]

Gil came off injured in an U21 game against Wolves at the start of April, and then was confirmed as still injured at the end of the season.  Until being injured he was therefore part of every squad.

[paul_e]

While Gil didn't play well vs Stoke that should have been a conversation Sherwood had with him afterwards to set new expectations. If after that Gil didn't respond in training then it's on him. The dye shouldn't have been cast in that game and it really wasn't as he was brought in vs Albion and appreared on the bench for a few games after that. Either Sherwood gave up or Gil progressively got worse in training. But something happened where the manager decided he wasn't someone to go to battle with in a relegation fight.

That's what I think happened (i.e. "I want to see you do something to fix this flaw I've spotted" and nothing happened in training to suggest that was taken on board), accompanied by the injury that Risso mentioned, although he was definitely in training before the final because he was in the videos and photos of the preparation for it.

[villasjf]

They have been discussing him on TS and it is rumoured that 3 spannish clubs want him for around £3.5m and a couple of premier league clubs want him on loan.

[1_Pablo_Angel]

He was a joy to watch in his first few games. Technically, looked head and shoulders above the rest of our lot from his first touch against Liverpool.

I recall him playing well to start with in the 4-0 stuffing we took at Arsenal in the league, but looking more and more pissed off with his teammates' total inability to do anything to help him. Then in the Stoke game he was coming stupidly deep and trying to take men on in daft positions, but at the time I just thought this was sheer frustration with how shit the rest of them were. Players with that kind of footballing ability don't end up at Villa Park very often, I think it would be a crying shame if we didn't at least persevere with trying to get the best out of him.

[villadelph]

They have been discussing him on TS and it is rumoured that 3 spannish clubs want him for around £3.5m and a couple of premier league clubs want him on loan.

Saw that Moyes was keeping tabs on him.. really don't want him to go. 

[john e]

If he's going I hope he goes out on loan then if he does well he can come back