Gabby - keep or let go

[silhillvilla]

He does look about a stone overweight to me. His asset is his speed and I think he needs to get fitter.

[warleyboy]

I like the lad, sorry but I do.
Not much as a footballer, although he has had his moments.
I would never belittle him, he is a true villan and he obviously loves the club to bits.
I think TS making him club captain was a nice move, but we will see his playing time reduce drastically as the season unfolds.

I for one, hope we see him around villa for years to come in whatever role they deem fit, he is a good un, just like Taylor, Dublin, Hendrie etc.

[Clampy]

I'm not sure that i'd get rid of him but he shouldn't be starting games now we've got other options.

[Villa in Denmark]

Gabby seems to be made a bit of a scapegoat for last night but I've said it before, he's at his best when he's got a winger whipping in crosses for him. When was the last time we had a decent winger at Villa? Look at all the wasted set pieces from last night as well. It's a bit unfair on him I think.

Scapegoat implies he's blameless and being picked on unfairly.  He's not. It's not just the last few games,or even the last couple of seasons.  The same points have been made about his limitations pretty much since he broke into the team.  They just seem more obvious now he's older and a bit slower, and there are a few seasons'worth of fairly damning stats to back it up.

The most damming of all being that if you take Gabby's defenders stance that we don't play to his strengths anymore, as S_H describes and go back the last season we played that way which I reckon was under Houllier with Downing/Young/Albrighton playing wide, you discover that Gabby managed 5 goals in 32 games and was outscored by Ivanhoe with 6 in 25!

[Pete3206]

All this Gabby bashing is all well and good, but we're hardly awash with decent forward players at the moment. I'm all for shipping players out if better replacements arrive, but for now, why don't we just get behind him?

As for being overweight, yeah right.

[Villa in Denmark]

I think Ayew is earmarked as his replacement, and if things are panning out as Sherwood hopes Gabby will be available come January or next summer.

[peter w]

Seeing that we were largely lumping the ball up front I'm not sure what was expected from Gabby. We struggled as a team to get the forward players properly involved and Gabby still did a lot of donkey work in dropping deep or looking to run the channels. That the tram failed to use the ball well enough with the forwards is barely a stick to beat Gabby with.

[tony scott]

Gabby ? has frustrated a Significant number of fans for the last few seasons, which have been mostly spent near the bottom of the league.  I would like too think he will improve if the team improve, I just don't know.

[Bad English]

I would like too think he will improve if the team improve,

I would like him to improve, thus improving he team.

[Chris Jameson]

I wish he'd start showing he loves the club because I don't see too many signs of it.

[silhillvilla]

I think he will get a few more starts under sherwood and he will need to deliver the goods or I can see patience wearing thin.

[OCD]

He's had an easy ride for far too long. I would like him to have a much harder time get into the side, with our new signings and Gil/Grealish, that might start happening. That he's club captain and Richards is team captain suggests he's not a guaranteed starter.

[Goldie.7]

I really don't understand some fans.

[Percy McCarthy]

He gets more stick than anyone. I think it's because he's so brilliant in his occasional blinders people hold it against him when he's average. Seems strange to me that some players get a pass for being in a crap side that has hardly attacked for five years, but not a striker/winger who is detailed half the time to help our full-back or pick up the other team's deep-lying playmaker.*

*For those of you who wonder why managers keep picking him,

[PeterWithesShin]

Not sure many attacking players got a much of a pass (potential pun not intended), Weimann and Zog got/get loads of stick. As did Bent. Even Benteke at stages last season. Delph, Westwood and Cleverley also copped it for lack of goals/assists etc.