Gillingham: Time to take Bradley Dack gamble – View | OneFootball

The summer rumour mill has linked Bradley Dack with a sensational return to Gillingham. Could it be a gamble worth taking?

Highlights

If you'd sat down with a Gillingham fan as little as three months ago and told them that there was a chance, even an outside one, that the club could re-sign Bradley Dack for the 2024/25 League Two season, the chances are you'd have been laughed at. Yet here we are, potentially on the verge of a remarkable return for one of the club's most beloved players over the last decade.

Dack departed Priestfield Stadium for Blackburn Rovers back in 2017 after five brilliant years as a pro the Gills, having come through the club's youth system and worked his way into the first team to become a bone-fide star for the Kent club.

Now, seven years later, Dack has been linked with a sensational return to Priestfield in a move that has left fans both excited and uncertain, with views ranging from giddy excitement to guarded caution given Dack's injury record.

Bradley Dack: A Priestfield hero

Dack worked his way up through the youth setup at Priestfield and earned himself a full pro contract in the summer of 2012. He started to feature on the substitutes' bench and make fleeting appearances towards the end of games. By the end of the 2013/14 season, Dack was an established first-teamer.

His most prolific season in a Gills shirt came in 2015/16, when he hit 13 goals in 40 League One appearances as the Gills finished ninth in the division. But, after Gillingham narrowly escaped relegation the following season, Dack was sold to Blackburn Rovers for an initial £750,000.

Winning over Blackburn Rovers

Dack quickly became a fan-favourite at Ewood Park as he helped Blackburn earn promotion to the Championship in his first season with the club.

Playing in his favoured position, as a deep-lying forward, Dack hit 18 goals in 42 league games in 2017/18 to help fire them to promotion out of League One. Then, the following season, he netted 15 more as he showed that his abilities could translate to the higher level.

But, the following season, disaster struck, when he suffered the first of two ACL injuries that threatened to derail his career. The first injury left him out of action for almost a year, then, four months after his return, he sustained the same injury to his other knee and he was back on the shelf for another five months.

Dack eventually departed Blackburn for Sunderland on a one-year deal in the summer of 2023, but a difficult season at the club saw him released at the end of his contract. Now Dack is a free agent, considering his next move, and rumours have strongly linked him with a return to Priestfield, with Gillingham boss Mark Bonner admitting that he has had a conversation with the former Gill in recent weeks.

Return of the Dack? Why Bradley Dack is a gamble worth taking for Gillingham

Given his injury issues, it's unreasonable to assume that Dack will consistently operate at Championship level at this stage in his career. But if he's fit to play, he would be one of the best players in League Two. The two big questions are, would Dack drop down to the fourth tier, and would Gillingham take the plunge and sign him?

From Gillingham's side, it could be a gamble worth taking. The squad has already been refreshed, with key signings drafted in to make the side noticeably more dangerous heading into the new campaign, and the club looks ready to mount a run towards the top seven next season.

But the signing of someone like Dack could be the cherry on top of the cake, with the addition of a proven playmaker who can create and score goals at Championship and League One level could be the final piece in the jigsaw to turn Gillingham into legitimate contenders for the automatic promotion places in 2024/25.

Could it happen? Will it happen? Watch this space...