High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Gary Gardner (born 26 June 1992) is an English footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Aston Villa. A product of the Aston Villa Academy, Gardner spent a brief loan spell at Coventry City in 2011 and has made a number of appearances at different international levels for England. He is the younger brother of current Sunderland midfielder and former Aston Villa team-mate Craig Gardner.