The 25-year-old midfielder made the difficult decision to leave Birmingham, the club he supported as a boy, for Sunderland in order to remain in the Premier League and further his claims on a place in Fabio Capello's England squad. Gardner, who despite his roots launched his professional career at Aston Villa, found himself in demand and understandably so after contributing 10 goals to the Blues' season, which brought them Carling Cup glory, but also the heartache of relegation. But if his prowess in and around the penalty area has come as a surprise to some in recent seasons, the man himself has never been in any doubt about the weapons in his armoury. Gardner said: "I have always been a goalscoring midfielder, from my younger days playing at the Villa academy. "Then I broke through at Villa and Martin O'Neill started playing me at right-back and everyone thought I was more of a defender, which wasn't the case. "But now I have actually got my chance to play in my position for the last two seasons, I have shown I can score goals, and hopefully now I can carry it on at Sunderland. "I said at the start of last season that if I didn't score 10 goals, I would consider it a failure, and I am going to say the same this season. "I missed a lot of games last year and I could have got more. I want to be in the same boat this year, I want 10 goals to my name, and I would consider that as a big season for me again." Goals from midfield have been conspicuous by their absence for Sunderland during manager Steve Bruce's reign to date, and Gardner and former Birmingham team-mate Sebastian Larsson will be charged with the task of addressing that issue this season. The pair are among nine new faces - one-time loanee Ahmed Elmohamady, Connor Wickham, Ji Dong-won, Keiren Westwood, Wes Brown, John O'Shea and David Vaughan are the others - to have headed for the Stadium of Light since the end of the last campaign as part of a major rebuilding exercise. In Gardner's case, cutting his ties with St Andrew's, where he still has a box, was tough, but opting to relocate to Wearside was not. He said: "I'll be honest, it was difficult. I didn't know anything else, I didn't know what it was like at Sunderland. "But now I am here - I'm not glad in a way, but I am glad for my career because it's a big step for me. "It shows what we want to do this year with the players we have brought in. It's a great move for my career." Sunderland, of course, have not won a major trophy since their famous 1973 FA Cup giant-killing feat against the then mighty Leeds, and the hunger to end that wait for silverware grows with every passing year. The club has undergone huge change over the last five years since former striker Niall Quinn took on the role of chairman after persuading the Drumaville consortium and then Texan tycoon Ellis Short to buy it, and their respective investments have helped to stabilise the Black Cats in the Barclays Premier League. Last season's top-10 finish cemented their status as top-flight regulars, and Bruce is now aspiring to loftier aims. To that end, he has recruited in the shape of Brown and O'Shea in particular, the winning mentality he believes the club needs, while Gardner's experiences last season proved an education. He said: "There were some massive games I was involved in last year, including the cup final. "I have been there and I have got the experience now, so nothing else should faze me. "It was a season of ups and downs - but I don't want to dwell on that. I have moved on now and I am ready for the task at Sunderland."
