Wee bold Scot’s earned his shot with the big boys

HE might still be Billy the kid but playing like he is at 18 then Billy Gilmour is man enough to at least be included in Steve Clarke’s Scotland squad today.

The hype surrounding the teenage technician has been bubbling away since he was part of the Rangers academy and only intensified when Chelsea wrestled him away from Ibrox for the bright lights of the Premier League.

“Big deal, he’ll be back up the road on loan after a couple of years and nowhere near the Chelsea first team.”

Given how it’s panned out for the tartan teens who have gone south before him it wouldn’t have been overly cynical to predict a similar fate.

But this boy seems to have something different about him.

Gilmour could have become another of Chelsea’s army of loan players, farmed out in the hope something clicks and they can be brought back to bolster the squad for whoever happens to be in the hotseat at the time.

But Gilmour was promoted from the club’s Under-18 squad to the Under-23s just as he’d reached the legal drinking age.

Given Chelsea’s success at that level, it was no mean feat, but Gilmour more than held his own and has reaped the rewards this season.

A Premier League debut off the bench against Sheffield United at the end of August was just a taste before a first start in a 7-1 hammering of Grimsby in the League Cup.

But Gilmour gave everyone a flavour of what he was about as he pulled Liverpool apart in an FA Cup tie last week.

Everton got it at the weekend, with Gilmour standing out as the best player on the park as

Carlo Ancelotti’s men were scudded 4-0.

But it’s not just Chelsea fans and those north of the border bigging up wee Billy he’s even snapped Roy Keane out of a seemingly permanent state of ragin’.

“The other night I thought he was fantastic,” said the Manchester United legend after Gilmour wowed against Liverpool.

“I was sitting at home with a cup of tea and a bit of chocolate in front of me and I didn’t have the volume on. When the game started I got out of my seat which I rarely do and I thought, ‘Who is this kid?’

“There are certain traits you want from a midfielder whether it’s

If Lampard and Keane are telling you that a midfielder has it, you should listen

quality on the ball, football intelligence or composure. He had everything, it was one of the best performances I have seen in a long time.”

If Frank Lampard and Keane are telling you a midfielder has it then you should listen.

Chelsea are sitting fourth in the league and set for Champions League qualification.

And Gilmour isn’t just getting a few minutes here and there – he’s starting and running games v top sides.

The pressure and expectation at Chelsea is arguably higher than that of Scotland.

Which means Gilmour making the step up to the full international squad shouldn’t be too much of a leap for him.

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