Billy Gilmour is the latest Chelsea youngster to emerge this season. He played a key role in both his full FA Cup debut and his full Premier League debut. In both cases, Chelsea won the match and shut out their opponents.
Billy Gilmour: The Latest Chelsea Prospect
By looking at goal or assist stats you wouldn’t be able to see the full quality of the 18-year-old. He’s confident in the midfield, always finding an open man with a productive pass.
Injuries to Chelsea’s normal starters in the midfield opened up a position for Gilmour. N’Golo Kante, Matteo Kovacic, and Jorginho were all sidelined. Gilmour stepped up and filled their positions perfectly. With the addition of Hakim Ziyech to the Blues next season, they will be overloaded in the midfield.
Gilmour has all the traits needed for his position; quality on the ball, football intelligence, composure. He looks well experienced beyond his years. By watching the match it wouldn’t be apparent that it was his debut, he looked like he fit in perfectly.
Billy Gilmour’s Premier League Debut
In Chelsea’s dominant win over Everton, Gilmour did not record a goal or an assist, but he was at the center of Chelsea’s play. He may not have provided the assist for Mason Mount‘s opening goal, but he was the heart of the build-up.
Gilmour’s role in Olivier Giroud‘s goal was just as important. In this situation he received a pass, checked his shoulder, and instead of playing a simple ball to a sideways option, he split two lines of Everton’s midfield, leading to the goal. Gilmour again played a major role in the last goal of the match, playing the ball to Willian, who then provided the assist.
Gilmour could have had an assist when he broke through the defensive line and played the ball off to Tino Anjorin, who took too much time to settle the ball, and the chance was missed.
By the end of the game, Gilmour had made 74 passes, the most of any player on the pitch.
Before this match, there was concern that the injury crisis would ruin Chelsea’s finish to the season, but instead, it seems that these injuries were a blessing in disguise, paving the way for the arrival of football mastermind, Billy Gilmour.
What was said
Gilmour
“It was amazing,” Gilmour said after the game. “A dream come true to make my full debut in the Premier League. But the most important thing of all was to get the three points and to continue winning. Hopefully, we can carry on that good form.”
Lampard
“With Billy, I always felt that the more he trained with us, the better he got very quickly so for me, when he plays, he’s just going to get better,” Lampard said.
“I’m not going to jump the gun because it’s two outstanding performances in, but when you watch his intelligence and his receiving of the ball, even for the second goal with how he swivels on the ball, he’s always checking his shoulder, he plays a simple pass but he plays it right and with the perfect weight and he’ll put his foot in.
“The confidence of him today and his personality, it’s been a great start. I’m not too worried about him because I know what he’s like as a boy, he’s a good one and he’ll know the right things and has a big future, I hope.”
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