Gabriel Agbonlahor facts for kids
Agbonlahor playing for Aston Villa in 2008
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Gabriel Imuetinyan Agbonlahor | ||
| Date of birth | 13 October 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Birmingham, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2005 | Aston Villa | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2005–2018 | Aston Villa | 341 | (76) |
| 2005 | → Watford (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2005 | → Sheffield Wednesday (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| Total | 351 | (76) | |
| International career | |||
| 2006–2009 | England U21 | 13 | (4) |
| 2008–2009 | England | 3 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Gabriel Imuetinyan Agbonlahor (born 13 October 1986) is an English former professional footballer. He played as a forward, often as a striker or on the wing. Gabriel spent his whole professional career playing for Aston Villa. He also had short loan periods at Watford and Sheffield Wednesday when he was a teenager.
Gabriel came through Aston Villa's youth team. He made his first team debut in 2006. He played 391 games for Aston Villa in total. This included 322 matches in the Premier League. He scored 87 goals for the club. He was Aston Villa's top Premier League goalscorer with 74 goals for 11 seasons. This record was broken by Ollie Watkins in May 2025. Gabriel also played for the England under-21s. He made his debut for the senior England team in 2008 and played three times for them.
Contents
Gabriel's Football Journey
Starting Out in Football
Before joining Aston Villa, Gabriel played for local teams. He was spotted by Aston Villa scouts during a district game. He also played a few games for Wolverhampton Wanderers. But he chose to join Aston Villa, the team he supported as a boy.
Gabriel grew up playing in Aston Villa's youth teams. He signed his first professional contract in June 2005. On 22 September 2005, he went on loan to Watford. This was a team in the Championship league. He played his first senior game for Watford six days later. He came on as a substitute in a match against Coventry City. He played one more game for Watford.
Later, on 28 October, he went on loan to another Championship team, Sheffield Wednesday. He played eight games for them but did not score any goals.
Gabriel made his Premier League debut for Aston Villa on 18 March 2006. He was 19 years old. His manager, David O'Leary, gave him a chance because other strikers were injured. Gabriel scored a goal after 63 minutes against Everton. However, Villa lost the game 4–1.
Making a Mark: 2006–2008
In the 2006–07 season, Gabriel scored three goals in pre-season games. He scored twice against Walsall and once against NEC. He started the season playing on the right wing for Aston Villa. His first goal of the season came against Charlton Athletic in a 2–0 win. On 30 September, he scored an important goal against Chelsea. His header helped Villa get a 1–1 draw.
Gabriel also scored a winning goal in a cup game against Leicester City. He scored in injury time to win the game 3–2. He later scored against Manchester United. This meant he had scored against all the "Big Four" teams. On 20 January 2007, he scored another injury-time goal against Watford. This ended a long period without a win for Villa.
Gabriel played almost every minute of the 2006–07 season. His manager, Martin O'Neill, praised him for playing well out of his usual position. After this, Gabriel signed a new four-year contract with Villa. He then scored in three games in a row.
On 2 September, Gabriel scored a key goal in Aston Villa's 2–0 win against Chelsea. He also scored the winning goal in the "Second City derby" against Birmingham City on 11 November. This was a very important goal for the fans. Gabriel won the Premier League Player of the Month award for November 2007. On 12 April 2008, he scored in a big 6–0 win against Derby County. He also scored in another Second City derby against Birmingham City, helping Villa win 5–1.
Hat-tricks and Big Goals: 2008–2010
On 15 August 2008, Gabriel signed another four-year contract with Villa. Just two days later, he scored a "perfect" hat-trick against Manchester City. This means he scored with his head, right foot, and left foot. He scored all three goals in just seven minutes! This was one of the fastest hat-tricks in Premier League history. Villa won the game 4–2.
He started to play very well with his teammate John Carew. They both scored in games against West Bromwich Albion and Wigan Athletic. On 3 November 2008, Gabriel was involved in a disagreement with Newcastle United player Joey Barton. After looking into it, no further action was taken. On 15 November, Gabriel scored and helped set up another goal in a 2–0 win against Arsenal. He scored two goals against Bolton Wanderers on 13 December. He scored his tenth league goal of the season against Blackburn Rovers on 7 February.
After a period where he didn't score as much, Gabriel was still important. He was nominated for the PFA Young Player of the Year award. His teammate Ashley Young won the award that year.
Gabriel's first goal of the 2009–10 season came against Fulham. He scored from 25 yards out in a 2–0 win. He then scored the only goal in the first Second City derby of the season against Birmingham City. He scored his fourth and fifth goals in a row against Cardiff City and Blackburn. On 24 October 2009, he scored against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
He scored the only goal in a 1–0 win against Manchester United at Old Trafford. This was Villa's first league win there since 1983. Gabriel also scored in the League Cup semi-final against Blackburn. This helped Villa reach the final, where they lost to Manchester United. He scored twice against Fulham on 30 January 2010. Gabriel finished the season with 13 goals in the Premier League and 16 goals in all competitions.
Continuing to Play: 2010–2014
At the start of the 2010–11 season, Aston Villa faced some challenges. Their manager, Martin O'Neill, left the club. They also had a big 6–0 loss to Newcastle United. But Gabriel said he wanted to stay at the club for a long time. On 12 November 2010, he signed a new contract until 2015. On 16 January 2011, he played his 200th game for Aston Villa in a 1–1 draw against rivals Birmingham.
Gabriel scored his first Premier League goal since April 2010 in a 2–1 win against Wigan Athletic. On 16 April 2011, he scored a winning goal in injury time against West Ham United. He scored fewer goals this season because the manager, Gérard Houllier, often played him as a winger.
Gabriel scored his first goal of the 2011–12 season in a 3–1 win against Blackburn Rovers. He then scored in a 2–2 draw against Everton. For his good performances, he was named Aston Villa's Player of the Month for August 2011. He scored again against Newcastle, making it three goals in three games. This meant he had already matched his goal tally from the previous season after only five matches.
After Alex McLeish became the new manager, Gabriel started scoring more goals. He scored the first goal and set up another in a great performance against Wigan. He also played very well against Norwich City, setting up two goals and scoring one himself. On 7 January 2012, he scored in an FA Cup win against Bristol Rovers. On 3 April 2012, after Aston Villa captain Stiliyan Petrov was diagnosed with a serious illness, Gabriel was named team captain.
When Paul Lambert became manager in 2012, Gabriel was not chosen as captain. He started the season injured. His first game was a 1–1 draw against Newcastle United on 2 September 2012. He later scored two goals in a memorable 4–2 League Cup win against Manchester City. On 3 November 2012, he scored his first Premier League goal in almost a year against Sunderland.
On 6 April 2013, Gabriel scored his 60th Premier League goal for Aston Villa. This made him the joint top Premier League goalscorer for the club, along with Dwight Yorke. On 29 April, in a big 6–1 win over Sunderland, he scored his 61st Premier League goal. This meant he had scored more Premier League goals for Villa than anyone else. He scored two goals in a 2–1 win over Norwich on 4 May.
Gabriel started the 2013–14 season well. He won two penalties in a 3–1 win against Arsenal. He also helped set up a goal against Chelsea. His manager, Paul Lambert, praised him a lot. In September, Gabriel played in a charity match. During the game, he accidentally tackled and injured One Direction member Louis Tomlinson. Gabriel apologized, but he received many messages from One Direction fans online.
Later Years at Villa
On 10 September 2014, Gabriel signed a new four-year contract. He said he was happy to still be helping the club. Three days later, he scored the only goal in a win against Liverpool. On 20 December, he received a red card for a challenge on former teammate Ashley Young. However, his three-match ban was removed after an appeal.
Gabriel played his 300th Premier League game for Villa on 14 March 2015 against Sunderland. He scored two goals in the first half, helping Villa win 4–0. On 30 May, he played in the FA Cup Final against Arsenal at Wembley Stadium. Villa lost the game 4–0.
Gabriel was named club captain at the start of the 2015–16 season. However, he was later dropped from the team by manager Rémi Garde. There were talks about him leaving the club, but no move happened. Gabriel returned to the team in an FA Cup game against Manchester City. A week later, he scored his first goal of the season in a 2–0 win against Norwich. This was his first goal in 11 months.
In April 2016, Aston Villa suspended Gabriel for a short time. He was later fined and gave up the captaincy. He did not impress the new manager, Roberto Di Matteo, in pre-season. He turned down a move to Reading.
When Steve Bruce became manager, he brought Gabriel back into first-team training. Bruce said it was a "clean slate" for him. Gabriel then worked on his fitness. He came on as a substitute in the Second City derby on 23 April 2017. He scored the only goal in a 1–0 win.
Gabriel played six games for Villa in the 2017–18 season. He scored one goal in the first game against Hull City. His last game for the club was on 23 December 2017 against Sheffield United. He left Aston Villa at the end of the season when his contract finished. He had been with his hometown club for 17 years. During his time at Villa, he scored 86 goals in 391 games. He was the club's record Premier League scorer with 74 goals until 2025. He stopped playing football on 27 March 2019, when he was 32 years old.
Playing for England
Youth Teams
Gabriel could have played for Scotland or Nigeria because of his family background. But he chose to play for his home country, England.
In September 2006, he was considered for the Nigeria under-20 team. He turned down the offer, but said he might play for them in the future. However, he later decided to play only for England.
On 28 September 2006, Gabriel was called up to the England under-21 team for the first time. He played his first game as a substitute against Germany. He later scored his first goal for the under-21s against Montenegro.
Senior England Team
On 1 February 2008, Gabriel was chosen for Fabio Capello's England squad. They were going to play against Switzerland. But a hamstring injury stopped him from playing. He was also a substitute in friendly games against the United States and Trinidad & Tobago.
On 15 November 2008, he was called up to Capello's squad again for a game against Germany. Three other Aston Villa players were also in the squad. On 19 November 2008, he started the game against Germany. He played for 76 minutes and had a goal disallowed. John Terry praised him, saying he was "a nightmare to play against".
On 11 February 2009, he started against Spain. He played for 75 minutes. He made his first appearance in a competitive international game on 14 October 2009. This was in a 3–0 win over Belarus. It was the last game of qualification for the 2010 World Cup. He was last called up to the England squad in November 2011.
Life After Football
Gabriel Agbonlahor was born in Birmingham, England. His parents separated when he was young, and he was raised by his father. He did not have contact with his mother for about 20 years. In 2009, his mother made a public request to reconnect with him. Gabriel later contacted her, and they became close again.
After he stopped playing football, Gabriel started working as a football expert. He has appeared on Sky Sports and Talksport. He also writes articles for online magazines.
Career Statistics
Club Games
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Aston Villa | 2005–06 | Premier League | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 9 | 1 | |
| 2006–07 | Premier League | 38 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 42 | 10 | ||
| 2007–08 | Premier League | 37 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 40 | 11 | ||
| 2008–09 | Premier League | 36 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 48 | 13 | |
| 2009–10 | Premier League | 36 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 46 | 16 | |
| 2010–11 | Premier League | 26 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 32 | 5 | |
| 2011–12 | Premier League | 33 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 36 | 6 | ||
| 2012–13 | Premier League | 28 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | — | 33 | 12 | ||
| 2013–14 | Premier League | 30 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 31 | 4 | ||
| 2014–15 | Premier League | 34 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 36 | 6 | ||
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 15 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 18 | 1 | ||
| 2016–17 | Championship | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 14 | 1 | ||
| 2017–18 | Championship | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 1 | ||
| Total | 341 | 76 | 16 | 2 | 22 | 7 | 12 | 2 | 391 | 87 | ||
| Watford (loan) | 2005–06 | Championship | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| Sheffield Wednesday (loan) | 2005–06 | Championship | 8 | 0 | — | — | — | 8 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 351 | 76 | 16 | 2 | 22 | 7 | 12 | 2 | 401 | 87 | ||
International Games
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | 2008 | 1 | 0 |
| 2009 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 3 | 0 | |
Awards and Achievements
Aston Villa
- FA Cup runner-up: 2014–15 (meaning they came second)
- Football League Cup runner-up: 2009–10 (meaning they came second)
England U21
- UEFA European Under-21 Championship runner-up: 2009 (meaning they came second)
Individual Awards
- Premier League Player of the Month: November 2007
See also
In Spanish: Gabriel Agbonlahor para niños
