Player #839 for Aston Villa, Gary Gardner played as a midfielder for the club in Villa’s 2011-12 and 2012-13 Premier League campaigns, as well as Villa’s Football League Championship campaigns of 2016-17 and 2017-18. Gardner made 47 appearances and scored once.

Gardner was born in Solihull on 26 June 1992.

Gardner had joined Villa as a schoolboy and signed professional forms with the club in July 2011 before Alex McLeish promoted him to the first team squad for the officially recognised pre-season tournament that ran that year - the Premier League Asia Trophy.

McLeish handed Gardner his first appearance as a 74’ substitute for Stiliyan Petrov in Villa’s 0-2 Final defeat to Chelsea on Saturday, 30 July 2011 at the Hong Kong Stadium.

McLeish would then named Gardner in the squad for three consecutive games from Saturday, 17 September 2011 to Sunday, 25 September 2011 without making an appearance before being sent out on a short term loan to Coventry City.

On his return Gardner was named in Villa’s Boxing Day squad for the 0-0 Premier League draw at Stoke City but remained an unused substitute and he went on to be named in all 23 squads under Alex McLeish until the end of the season, making 11 substitute appearances and 5 starts.

With Alex McLeish’s departure and Paul Lambert’s arrival as his successor Gardner was named in Villa’s first Premier League squad of the 2012-13 season coming on as a 74’ substitute for Charles N’Zogbia in Villa’s 0-1 loss to West Ham United on Saturday, 18 August 2012. In doing so Gardner followed in his brother Craig’s footsteps who had also played for the Villa first team having made his debut aged 19 on Monday, 26 December 2005.

Following his appearance however Gardner would suffer an injury that ruled him out of virtually the entire campaign, returning to the squad for only for the final two games of the season, and making his second and last appearance of the season an 88’ substitute in the final game of the campaign in Villa’s draw at Wigan Athletic on Sunday, 19 May 2013.

Gardner spent the entire 2013-14 campaign either injured, unused or out on loan being named as an unused substitute on four occasions by Paul Lambert and spending a one month loan spell with Sheffield Wednesday.

2014-15 saw Gardner sent out on loan to Brighton & Hove Albion from August to December 2014, on his return Gardner was named just once in the squad by Lambert for the 3rd Round FA Cup tie with Blackpool on Sunday, 4 January 2015 but he remained an unused substitute and was soon after sent on loan for the rest of the campaign to Nottingham Forest as Villa under Tim Sherwood avoided relegation and qualified for the 2015 FA Cup final.

With Sherwood surprisingly kept on as manager for the 2015-16 Gardner was unselected in the squad as the inevitable second season struggle engulfed Sherwood and Villa and the team of misfits the club had put together. With Sherwood sacked and his successor Rémi Garde in post, Gardner was sent out on loan to Nottingham Forest once again from January to May 2016.

2016-17 saw Villa in the second tier for the first time in nearly 30 years and with a new manager in place and a restructuring of 2015-16’s most insipid of squads in progress, Roberto Di Matteo gave Gardner his chance. Handing Gardner 4 starts and 3 substitute appearances in the first 9 games, Gardner was having his longest run of games in 5 seasons with the club however Villa’s results were poor with just one win in twelve and Di Matteo was sacked.

With Steve Bruce as Di Matteo’s successor, Gardner was named in 32 squads, making 15 starts and 5 substitute appearances as Villa struggled to adapt to life in the Championship and toiled to 13th place.

Gardner had scored his first and sole goal for the club in only his third start under Steve Bruce, putting Villa ahead in the 1-1 Championship draw with Birmingham City on Sunday, 30 October 2016 which prompted one of the most extraordinary celebrations seen, with Gardner running the full length of the pitch to celebrate with Villa’s fans.

Gardner’s increased exposure to the Villa first team in 2016-17 however didn’t prompt a longer career with Villa and Bruce would name him in just one squad in 2017-18, starting Gardner in Villa’s 2-1 EFL Cup win at Colchester United on Wednesday, 9 August 2017 before sending him out on loan for the remainder of the season to Barnsley.

Bruce would then send Gardner out on loan once again in the 2018-19 campaign, sanctioning a season long loan with Birmingham City.

On Gardner’s return, Bruce was gone, Dean Smith was Villa manager and Villa were a Premier League club once again with no place for Gardner who was granted a permanent move to Birmingham City plus £4,050,000 in exchange for Jota.

On his arrival at Birmingham City, Gardner professed his undying love for Villa’s neighbours, as his brother had done nearly 10 years earlier. No-one had the heart to remind him about Sunday, 30 October 2016.

Gardner had played under Alex McLeish, Paul Lambert, Roberto Di Matteo and Steve Bruce.