Carles Gil is set to remain at Aston Villa for the 2015-16 season, as manager Tim Sherwood has revealed that the Spaniard will be an integral part of the first-team.
Gil was expected to be sold this summer, after failing to hit the ground running last term. However, the 22-year-old travelled with the squad to Portugal in pre-season and has made an impression in front of Tim Sherwood and Ray Wilkins.
Sherwood told the Birmingham Mail, “He is going to play a lot more football this year because we’re not in that situation where it’s a relegation battle.”
“I didn’t know him (last season) and we were playing a different way.”
“I always talk about that jigsaw and unfortunately he wasn’t part of that intense approach we needed to win games.”
“I needed to put players in who I trusted a little bit more.”
“It’s different now, and hopefully we can get him on the ball in important areas of the field.”
Gil was bought by Sherwood’s predecessor, Paul Lambert, who regarded him as a winger. But that looks set to change, as Sherwood believes that the ex-Valencia man is more suited to a central role, behind the striker. Sherwood stated that he sees Gil’s best position as a “Number 10”
“Until we exhaust what he has to offer I don’t think its right to bring anyone else into that position.”
“He has shown me a lot in this pre-season already that he can play and affect things for us.”
The Midlands club have been linked with numerous attacking midfielders in this transfer window, but those talks could be squashed now that Gil has a reserved place in the side. The boss believes that the man from Valencia will be like a ‘new signing’.
