Gabby Agbonlahor thread

I want to see what Tim can get out of Gabby. There's still a very useful footballer in there somewhere. He's frustrating because when he's on top form he can tear teams apart, but unfortunately that's very seldom.

But he does deserve more respect from the Villa fans, even just for all those derby goals alone.

 
The manager that ruined Gabby was ironically the manager under whom he made his name.
Remember when Gabby was in the team, scaring defences shitless with his pace because, he was scoring goals in double digits.
Remember when the manager then wanted Gabby to bulk up so he could barge defenders off the ball.
instead of bulking him up and negating his biggest asset, speed, the manager should have been giving him extra training on ways to score goals.
Since then we haven't had and still don't have, a manager with enough bottle to tell Gabby, that he needs to
lose a couple of stone, improve his ball control and score 15+ a season.
 
1958Villan - 11/8/2015 14:22

The manager that ruined Gabby was ironically the manager under whom he made his name.
Remember when Gabby was in the team, scaring defences shirtless with his pace because, he was scoring goals in double digits.
Remember when the manager then wanted Gabby to bulk up so he could barge defenders off the ball.
instead of bulking him up and negating his biggest asset, speed, the manager should have been giving him extra training on ways to score goals.
Since then we haven't had and still don't have, a manager with enough bottle to tell Gabby, that he needs to
lose a couple of stone, improve his ball control and score 15+ a season.
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Houllier told him to lose muscle and dropped him out of the team. Gabby refused to listen, criticised the manager and then decided to bulk up even more.
 
I agree he can be frustrating at times but comparing him to Yorky is a little unfair once again York was the main striker Gabby plays second fiddle first to Bent then Benteke fair enough hes not big enough for a main striker but compare him like for like with someone like Shane Long may be Long is better but its a fairer comparison. Bit surprised he did not get the blame for the F.A. Cup final as well as he was put on as sub by which time the game was over anyway.
 
Last chance saloon for him, if Tim's not able to get the best out of Gabby then I couldn't care if he went on a free. People keep saying the scapegoating Gabby rubbish but you fail to say that he's the worst player in a shit team and refuses to do any game changing move whether on the wing or as a striker. This scapegoating lark is a defence mechanism for the gabby lovers
 
Merlin128777 - 11/8/2015 14:32
Bit surprised he did not get the blame for the F.A. Cup final as well as he was put on as sub by which time the game was over anyway.
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Statements like that are what pisses fans off, you'd have to be an idiot to blame Gabby for the final, not one of the players turned up.
 
david-avfc - 11/8/2015 21:26

1958Villan - 11/8/2015 14:22

The manager that ruined Gabby was ironically the manager under whom he made his name.
Remember when Gabby was in the team, scaring defences shirtless with his pace because, he was scoring goals in double digits.
Remember when the manager then wanted Gabby to bulk up so he could barge defenders off the ball.
instead of bulking him up and negating his biggest asset, speed, the manager should have been giving him extra training on ways to score goals.
Since then we haven't had and still don't have, a manager with enough bottle to tell Gabby, that he needs to
lose a couple of stone, improve his ball control and score 15+ a season.
Click to expand...

Houllier told him to lose muscle and dropped him out of the team. Gabby refused to listen, criticised the manager and then decided to bulk up even more.
Click to expand...


Sums him up really. Perhaps he'd be better at Ice Hockey?.......


:14:


 
I don't think Gabby was singled out at all last season, Guzan got flack, Lowton, N'zog, Westwood, Baker, Vlaar, even Benteke got it in the neck on here sometimes. If Gabby is getting more criticism it's down to him being here for many seasons and under performing, he's a striker that hasn't scored many goals in the last few years not even threatening double figures.

When he does score one of his goals every other month we have to put up with Classless82 coming on and telling us how good he is, funny that he is never on here telling us how good he is when he isn't scoring.

He's an average player, not terrible and nowhere near terrific, I can see Sherwood fazing him out eventually.

Personally I love it when and if anyone I criticise in a Villa shirt proves me wrong, I would love Gabby to show us that his best days aren't behind him, but that's up to him, not us! Until then he is open for fair criticism of his poor form.
 
Merlin128777 - 11/8/2015 14:32
I agree he can be frustrating at times but comparing him to Yorky is a little unfair once again York was the main striker Gabby plays second fiddle first to Bent then Benteke fair enough hes not big enough for a main striker but compare him like for like with someone like Shane Long may be Long is better but its a fairer comparison. Bit surprised he did not get the blame for the F.A. Cup final as well as he was put on as sub by which time the game was over anyway.
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To be perfectly honest though, there's a reason why Gabby played second fiddle to both Bent and Benteke: they are natural finishers, they both score goals, and they do it on instinct.

If we had relied on Gabby to be our main goalscorer in the last few seasons, we'd be playing in the Championship now.

Gabby's "highlight" against Bournemouth - an energetic run at the defence that got the fans standing and the defenders worried - was followed by his usual end product, a tame shot on goal that was really little more than a back pass.

That kind of end product costs us, at the end of the day. If we can't rely on our main man up front to deliver when it counts, we're being short changed. It's simply not good enough. It hasn't been good enough for the last four seasons, and it isn't good enough now either.

Gabby has improved as a footballer since his debut. He still has pace, but he has power and the ability to hold up the ball and play team mates in. He hasn't improved in front of goal, however - he still lacks confidence, his decision making is still poor and his touch still lets him down. He's 28 now, and he's not going to get any better at this point, he's just going to decline.

Football's a young man's game. There's plenty of younger players than Gabby out there with all the positive attributes he possesses who also have a better footballing brain and the predatory instincts to put the ball in the back of the net if you give them the chance.

Gabby - the original speed merchant - is in serious danger of being overtaken by a younger, faster, fitter and more capable model.

It's really only a matter of time.
 
Agree it's a now or never year for him this season. There's more than enough creativity in that squad for him to either prove he can perform with more talent around him, or prove he's punching above his weight playing for a club with ambition for top 8-10?
Personally he's down the pecking order for me, but the manager currently seems to like him so watching this space is where we find ourselves at the minute.
 
l would ship the guy out today if l could . but with the comments above its tells you all you need to know about aston villa and some villa fans they need a player to love even if he his crap
 
Thats bollocks. It's not about loving a player, it's about loving the club. The level of negativity towards him in particular is unwarranted in my opinion, especially when it's the whole team that's been shit for years.

Judge him under a manager who looks like he gives a fuck, or rather wants to have a good go at the job.

Compare him to someone like Theo Walcott, who has been at Arsenal about the same time, yet the Manager has only recently worked out the best way to deploy him. Gabbys got similar stats, yet Walcott plays in a decent team. Try thinking outside the box lads instead of following the sheep, easy target cos he's a local lad, same goes for Clark. The fact that they have been playing for fuckwits god knows how long might have summat to do with it.



 
I judge him on his touch and skill and he has a touch like a baby elephant on a beach ball and very little skill , sooner the overrated wages thief goes the better and take Cole Zog and Senderos with him .
Zog gets dogs abuse but that's ok because he's not one of ours a presume because he has far more ability than Gabby , they've both been as useful as an ashtray on a motorbike for the last 4 years .
 
Yeah I bet you were saying that when he scored against the Albion, terrorised Lescott (a player people on here would take) and played a part in turning our season round with that result.

When has N'Zogbia, Cole or Senderos ever done anything in a Villa Shirt. Stupid comment!!

 
If Gabby plays as well as he did last game for the whole season I would be fine with that. Not great but not terrible; something that was better than average in my opinion. I think there is no doubt that Gabby will be a rotation player/ super sub this season under Sherwood. Which makes him an extremely valuable member to the squad in that role.

I also think he gets a bit much stick by the fans but I am guilty of feeling the same way with Gabby. The problem is he can look like a world beater for a game or two, just enough to think maybe he has finally figured it out, then he disappears for 6 or 7 games. Makes we want to pull my hair out.

He bleeds Claret and Blue however and has been a true professional so he deserves more appreciation from the fans (myself included). So as a rotation/ squad player I would argue Gabby is an important piece to our puzzle this season.
 
I think some are overly harsh on gabby. He is villa through and through. He hasn't jumped ship when others have, shouldn't we be getting behind someone when they have shown loyalty?. Look what happened with the snake this summer, yet we have a player who is doing the complete opposite and some are wanting him to be sold. Some may say that he stays because no one else wants him. That is complete bull, I refuse to believe that in the past 9 years he has not had the opportunity to go elsewhere. Also, yes, first and foremost he is there to score goals, but I think with his pace he is a big distraction for defenders, making quick darting runs pulls defenders out of positions and makes gaps for others to exploit. It's no coincidence he has been most effective in the O' Neil era when he had far better quality players around him. Since then he has been surrounded by mediocrity, this has I think brought his level right down. And let's not forget the tactical genius lameberk often played him out wide, he is just not effective there. Case in point last seasons goal against the baggies. Goal kick, flick on by tekkers, gabby on defenders shoulder and bang into the box, goal. That is his strength. Yes, we haven't seen enough but overall he should stay, this new era will be probably his final stretch at villa, but I do think that a lot of the critics are OTT. Gabby is one of us remember.
 
Pace is his best asset. He performed best when we were a counter attacking team under O'Neill. Since Milner went, Young went and Downing went we have not had one player capable of playing a defence splitting pass and I include the snake in that.

Now he has got 3 or 4!!





 
Frossum - 11/8/2015 18:33

If Gabby plays as well as he did last game for the whole season I would be fine with that. Not great but not terrible; something that was better than average in my opinion. I think there is no doubt that Gabby will be a rotation player/ super sub this season under Sherwood. Which makes him an extremely valuable member to the squad in that role.

I also think he gets a bit much stick by the fans but I am guilty of feeling the same way with Gabby. The problem is he can look like a world beater for a game or two, just enough to think maybe he has finally figured it out, then he disappears for 6 or 7 games. Makes we want to pull my hair out.

He bleeds Claret and Blue however and has been a true professional so he deserves more appreciation from the fans (myself included). So as a rotation/ squad player I would argue Gabby is an important piece to our puzzle this season.
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Frossum, according to your assessment I should be playing every week.
I'm 65, overweight, just over half a working heart but, I have been a Villan since 1958 and I not only bleed claret and blue but I cry claret and blue tears. And I'd score more goals than he does.
No player should be given the lee-way Gabby has been allowed. He has no end product and hasn't since the middle MON years.
Your attempts to blame every manager since MON is stupid.
Gabby is supposedly a professional, that should mean he'd work hard at improving his own game, without being told but, as said a few posts back, when Houllier told him to lose bulk, he argued and bulked up even more. Houllier shouldn't have dropped him, he should have ended his contract.
The big trouble with Gabby is, he's paid £50k a week and he can't be arsed most of the time.
If he made the effort, on the field, every game, I think most fans would forgive him for being useless.
As a striker Gabby couldn't hit water if he fell out of a boat.
 
Frossum - 11/8/2015 18:33
If Gabby plays as well as he did last game for the whole season I would be fine with that...
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...what, you mean you'd be fine with a striker who manages just one tame shot on goal all game for the rest of the season?

OK, let's try a differeng tack, shall we?

How many Premier League clubs currently have a forward on their books that - of fit and on form - you would field instead of Gabby every time?

Arsenal: Walcott,Giroud,Wellbeck, Sancez. 4.
Bournemouth: Callum Wilson. 1
Chelsea: Costa, Falcao, Remy. 3
Crystal Palace: Zaha, Baqmford. 2.
Everton: Lukaku, Miralles. 2.
Leicester: Vardy. He's a twat, but even so. 1.
Liverpool: Benteke (obviously), Sturridge, Ings. 3.
Man City: Bony, Aguero, Sterling, Dzeko. 4.
Man United: Hernandez, Rooney, Mata. 3.
Newcastle United: Cisse.1.
Norwich: 0.
Southampton: Pelle, Rodriguez, probably Long. 3.
Stoke: Afellay, Krkic, Crouch. 3. Hell, maybe even Joselu. 4.
Sunderland: Defoe. 1.
Swansea: Ayew, Michu, Gomis. 3.
Spurs: Kane, Adebayor. 2.
Watford: 0.
WBA: Rondon, Lambert. 2.
West Ham: Sakho, Carroll. 2.

Well, there you go. All but two Premier League clubs (in my opinion) have a player on their books who would walk straight into our first teamahead of Gabby. Some have two or more. I think I'mbeing pretty generous as well - there's quite a few players who I could have suggested, but didn't.

Even if you disagree with some of those suggestions, I douby you'll be able to dispute over half of them. Maybe not even 75%.

Which is a pretty sorry state of affairs, really. We should be aiming higher.
 
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