Billy Gilmour

[Vesper 28,880]

Gilmour pushing for Chelsea’s first team with the help of Fabregas videos and a Rangers academy overhaul

https://theathletic.com/1566879/2020/01/29/billy-gilmour-chelsea-fabregas/

It was February 7, 2017, when Jody Morris saw something that convinced him Billy Gilmour had what it takes to make it to the top.

Rangers’ development team were playing Hibernian in Ormiston, East Lothian, and a 15-year-old Gilmour had been picked to compete in the heart of midfield against players as much as five years older than him. Shortly after the hour mark, with Rangers 1-0 up, the youngest and smallest player on the pitch caught Scott Martin with a late tackle that earned him a straight red card. Morris, then in his first season as Chelsea under-18s coach, was in attendance.

Far from being put off by Gilmour’s moment of indiscipline, he was encouraged by the display of tenacity. Chelsea were well aware of the midfielder’s exceptional technical gifts, which ensured that he frequently played ahead of his age group in the Rangers academy and had marked him out for Scotland in the Victory Shield tournament a year earlier. Less certain, though, was whether this startlingly small, slight teenager had the desire for a physical tussle against men.

Gilmour provided an emphatic response that day and has continued to answer every question posed of him since moving from Rangers to Chelsea in the summer of 2017. His first season working under Morris with the under-18s yielded four trophies, as well as a goal in the FA Youth Cup final against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. His second culminated in a UEFA Youth League final appearance after regular Premier League 2 game time with the development squad and Joe Edwards.

The presence of Morris and Edwards on Lampard’s first-team coaching staff has improved the comfort level of many academy graduates but those who deal with him at Cobham insist Gilmour is not the type of personality to ever be fazed by the prospect of training alongside illustrious senior internationals. He is described as quiet and calm but unshakeably confident, with a steely determination to maintain his lightning career progression and personal improvement.

“Billy is a very humble young man but he believes in what he’s doing,” Craig Mulholland, head of Rangers’ academy, tells The Athletic. “You need that inner self-belief to go to the next level.

“What we say to our young players at Rangers is that in order to break through at the top level, you need to have a certain amount of arrogance — but with it comes a humbleness. Finding that balance can sometimes be challenging for young players. If you look at the statistics for Scottish players who move across the border before the age of 18, the success rate is incredibly low. But Billy always believed he could buck that trend.”

Lampard has made no secret of the fact that he is a big fan, praising Gilmour as the best Chelsea player on the pitch in Saturday’s FA Cup fourth-round win over Hull City after a 22-minute cameo that saw him complete 18 of 19 attempted passes. Trust between player and head coach has been building since the pre-season trip to Ireland in July, when Gilmour impressed in training and in friendlies against Bohemians and St Patrick’s Athletic.

Eyebrows were raised when Lampard opted to hand Gilmour his senior debut off the bench as Chelsea tried and ultimately failed to protect a 2-1 lead against Sheffield United at Stamford Bridge in August but the midfielder’s display in a 7-1 dismantling of Grimsby in the Carabao Cup less than a month later gave a better indication of why he had been trusted. “I thought Gilmour ran the game from midfield,” Lampard said afterwards.

There is great pride among Chelsea academy staff at the strides Gilmour has made but unlike many of Lampard’s vibrant young core, his development is not purely a Cobham success story. Rangers provided his football grounding from the ages of eight to 15, and stand to benefit financially from various milestones in his career progression. Mulholland takes great satisfaction in what he has achieved already.

“The programme he had (at Rangers) over the years — lots of European tournaments where you play best vs best, exposed early to playing against men — always pushed him in groups and challenged him in that way,” he adds. “It’s set him up well for where he is today.

“We always knew his potential. When we profiled him against what our player characteristics were, he ticked an awful lot of those boxes. But with any young athlete in any sport, it depends how hard they work and also the level of supervision that’s around them.

“Every member of staff spoke positively about his willingness to learn in training sessions. He was always asking questions and had an enthusiasm in every session. As he got older and moved towards a more full-time environment, more and more, we saw him back doing extra stuff — whether that be watching clips with the coaches, doing one-on-ones or additional practice. He just loves football.”

Gilmour was steeped in football from an early age. His father, Billy Sr, was once a junior for Ardrossan Winton Rovers and played extensively at the lower levels of the Scottish game in Ayrshire. “He was around football dressing rooms as a young person and I think that’s rubbed off on him,” Mulholland says. Gilmour’s younger brother, Harvey, is now a highly-rated prospect in the youth ranks at Kilmarnock.

Billy Sr is a Celtic fan and for a while, Gilmour trained with both Old Firm clubs. When the time came to commit to one, however, emotion didn’t come into the decision. Rangers won out, partly because the journey from Ardrossan to their Murray Park training ground was easier for father and son but also because of the technical, possession-based philosophy Mulholland had implemented throughout the age groups.

“What we did five years ago is take the decision to quite radically change our academy programme — in terms of our style of play, our game model and culture,” Mulholland explains. “The way Billy’s now playing for Chelsea is what you see in the young Rangers teams. We have players in demand from many clubs across Europe, which maybe wasn’t the case before. So from our point of view, it suggests we’re doing something right.”

Chelsea see Gilmour, in the long term as a No 6, or a deep-lying playmaker, and Rangers identified him early on as being a natural central midfielder. “There are a lot of players of a young age who will move around different positions but that wasn’t the case with Billy,” Mulholland says.

“There was the odd occasion that we put him in different roles — not because we thought he was going to be that but simply to expose him to a different aspect of the game. There were other occasions where we subbed him in a game to see what reaction we’d get, or he started as a sub.

“We tried to develop his mental side and put road blocks in his way at times to see how he would handle it from a resilience perspective, and there were never any issues from it.”

Mulholland would often see Gilmour sitting with Graeme Murty, Rangers’ development squad coach, watching video clips — of his own performances, of Rangers senior players, and of some of the world’s best passing midfielders he was seeking to emulate. “We saw real-time learning with him in those situations,” he says. “Players can be all types of learners — some are more visual, some learn better on the pitch — but with Billy, we saw the learning happening as we went through the clips.”

That process has continued at Chelsea. Gilmour studied game footage of Cesc Fabregas closely when he first arrived at Cobham and has also cited the likes of Luka Modric, Andres Iniesta and Frenkie de Jong as inspirations. “These were and still are the players I watch all the time and base my game on,” Gilmour said in an interview with Versus magazine earlier this month.

Things came full circle for Gilmour after his masterclass against Grimsby. “He played amazing tonight,” Fabregas wrote on Twitter in response to a question from another user about the Scot. “Personality is the most important at this age and he’s got it all right. Now time to keep learning and taking advantage of these games to prove [to] the coach he’s good enough.”

Moving to England has accelerated Gilmour’s maturation. His family remain in Scotland while he lives in Cobham with two other Chelsea youngsters, and there has never been a hint of homesickness. “It was the best move I’ve made in my life so far. Absolutely no regrets about it!” he said this month. “I’m loving living in London as well; completely different energy to Glasgow. It’s a lot busier here, and a wee bit warmer as well — I’ve even got a tan now!”

A big part of Gilmour’s final step to a regular starting spot at Chelsea will be his physical development. Daily gym and core strength work has been a priority since the day he arrived at Cobham and he has made significant progress. He will also bulk up naturally as his body continues to mature but in the mean time  his battling instincts will continue to be a key attribute.

Internally at Cobham, the comparison has been made between Gilmour and a young Morris — himself a small, feisty, technically-gifted midfielder who rose from Chelsea’s academy to represent the club in the Champions League, as well as lifting the Cup Winners’ Cup and FA Cup.

Gilmour has even grander goals.

“That’s always been my ambition, to be the best player (in the world),” he told BBC Sport in an interview in September 2018. “If someone is better than me, I want to be better than them. I’ve always had a winning mentality and I hate losing, so when I see someone doing better, I need to match them.”

It is a mentality that has already helped him earn Lampard’s trust and one that should yield more opportunities to establish himself between now and the end of Chelsea’s season.

[Tomo 21,733]

Everything goes smoothly and he'll be Jorginho's eventual successor.

[Vesper 28,880]

Don't let Billy Gilmour's baby face fool you... the ambitious Scottish teenager is desperate to become the world's BEST player - but he may need a loan away from Chelsea to fulfil his true potential

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-7943723/Billy-Gilmour-needs-loan-away-Chelsea-fulfill-potential.html

[Special Juan 27,430]

He has now been moved into the senior squad.

[Tomo 21,733]

5 minutes ago, Special Juan said:

He has now been moved into the senior squad.

Not sure how I feel about that one.

On one hand happy for him but on the other hand don't want him in limbo with little matchtime across the board.

Hopefully he's in a development match whenever he isn't in the 18.

[Jase 43,479]

 

[milka 3,347]

 

[Nicco 927]

Poor decision I think, should've waited until the season ending and go from there but wish him luck, and hopefully he earns his spot.

[bohops 7]

I like this, should be getting chances ahead of Barkley and giving Jorginho a rest if performing well.

[Magic Lamps 11,655]

I am absolutely not a fan of him. He is tiny and him coming on vs Sheffield iirc cost us the game with his clumsiness and tendency to be dispossessed easily. Ordinary at best. Hopefully he proves me wrong. 

[Nicco 927]

47 minutes ago, Magic Lamps said:

I am absolutely not a fan of him. He is tiny and him coming on vs Sheffield iirc cost us the game with his clumsiness and tendency to be dispossessed easily. Ordinary at best. Hopefully he proves me wrong. 

My thoughts as well but if you say something bad about a youngster it means you're a hater and hate all youngsters by default. I think he was at fault for us losing 2 points against Sheffield if I remember right, anyways hope he breaks through.

[NikkiCFC 7,966]

For Sheffield fiasco I blame Zouma with last minute own goal of course!

[Jase 43,479]

9 hours ago, Nicco said:

Poor decision I think, should've waited until the season ending and go from there but wish him luck, and hopefully he earns his spot.

What do we lose by promoting Gilmour to the first team now though? He gets to train with more established, experienced players and might well play some games here and there along the way. We can then assess to see if he perhaps needs to be loaned out next season or should be kept as part of the team next season. 

9 hours ago, Magic Lamps said:

I am absolutely not a fan of him. He is tiny and him coming on vs Sheffield iirc cost us the game with his clumsiness and tendency to be dispossessed easily. Ordinary at best. Hopefully he proves me wrong. 

He's still very young and it was his first game for us. I'd cut him a lot of slack. If anything and I said it at that time, Lampard should be the one to be blamed for bringing him on. Should have brought on a defender instead, IMO. 

[OneMoSalah 8,778]

12 hours ago, Magic Lamps said:

I am absolutely not a fan of him. He is tiny and him coming on vs Sheffield iirc cost us the game with his clumsiness and tendency to be dispossessed easily. Ordinary at best. Hopefully he proves me wrong. 

Think thats harsh. Having watched him from his time at Rangers, with Scotlan and here I think he can be a really good player with some fine tuning in certain areas. PL isnt going to be easy for him just now as he had never played first team football at any other level before this season and that Sheffield game as youve said was tough for him but better players than Billy have went and struggled in matches against them so I wouldnt sweat it. Hes shown in cup games he can play well in this team and I dont think his inclusion as a first team squad member is rash or unwarranted as he has huge potential. A loan to the Championship would have maybe been better so he could get regular minutes and adjust to the physical demands of the league but technically he is very good and I think once he gets to grips with the standard in the PL through playing more youll change your mind. He is capable of playing in the deeper 2 or as a 10 so if Lamps trusts him he might have plenty opportuinities if Mason and Barkley continue to struggle. I really dont think Mason is that much ahead of Billy in terms of talent but he has more match experience and is slightly better physically due to that and being older. They are different players too but in terms of their ceilings I dont think Mason will be a much much better footballer in the long run if I am honest.

[Iggy Doonican 4,186]

12 hours ago, Magic Lamps said:

I am absolutely not a fan of him. He is tiny and him coming on vs Sheffield iirc cost us the game with his clumsiness and tendency to be dispossessed easily. Ordinary at best. Hopefully he proves me wrong. 

A 18 year old making his debut as a sub for 20 minutes and you're writing him off I've never heard something so ridiculous. How the fuck can someone be called ordinary when you've seen him play for 20 minutes. Who's next for your appraisal Stamford the Lion's performance pre match ordinary, hot dog seller didn't put enough onions on ordinary. DJ's choice of songs ordinary, ball boys ordinary, you're assessment of Gilmour extraordinary !.

[killer1257 3,282]

A 18 year old making his debut as a sub for 20 minutes and you're writing him off I've never heard something so ridiculous. How the fuck can someone be called ordinary when you've seen him play for 20 minutes. Who's next for your appraisal Stamford the Lion's performance pre match ordinary, hot dog seller didn't put enough onions on ordinary. DJ's choice of songs ordinary, ball boys ordinary, you're assessment of Gilmour extraordinary !.

Don't value his opinion too much. He always talks rubbish, so I stopped paying attention to most of his Comments, especially about Youth.
We could have had 17 Year old Messi in our youth and if he had misplaced a pass in a 10 minute debut, he would have written him of either. So, no point in arguing with him.



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[Tomo 21,733]

1 hour ago, Iggy Doonican said:

A 18 year old making his debut as a sub for 20 minutes and you're writing him off I've never heard something so ridiculous. 

Not to mention, Sheffield was a tougher match than we initially thought at the time.

[OneMoSalah 8,778]

9 hours ago, Tomo said:

Not to mention, Sheffield was a tougher match than we initially thought at the time.

Exactly. Better players than Billy have gone there and looked well out of their depth. Sheffield United are having an excellent season as well and if we, Spurs and United arent careful, could find ourselves behind them because they are very organised and seem to be able to get goals in key moments in games. Think Chris Wilder deserves the same respect, if not more than what Nuno got last season considering the fact hes kept the core of his championship first 11 in that team and hasnt spent anywhere near what Wolves did in the previous 2 or 3 seasons since they had the new owners and links with Jorge Mendes. Id go as far as saying if they finish in the top 6 or 8 Wilder would be a massive contender for manager of the year. In favt I would say if they finish where they are now he should 100% win it ahead of Klopp.