Gilmour set for loan move after Chelsea training axe
BIllY GIlmoUr is set for another loan spell away from Chelsea after being released from the first team’s pre-season training squad.
The Scotland international will join the Blues’ development squad, which is currently in Salt lake ahead of two fixtures between July 19 and 27, while his future is arranged.
The former rangers youngster, who is under contract at Stamford Bridge until the summer of 2024, enjoyed a promising start to life at Chelsea, making a series of impressive appearances under previous boss Frank lampard.
However, since Thomas Tuchel’s arrival in west london, Gilmour has found game time far harder to come by.
The 21-year-old was not involved in the club’s fixture against Club America in las Vegas on Sunday and since then reports have suggested that a loan move away is the likeliest scenario for the player this summer.
Tuchel said: ‘It is never easy and I didn’t like to do it because everyone deserves to stay with the squad but we had a very big squad already and then players came additionally on top.
‘It’s a very difficult decision because nobody deserved to go.
‘In the end, we had to take the decision to keep the quality high in training, so we decided for 24 players as a maximum and that’s why we went a bit smaller.’
Chelsea are relatively well stocked in central midfield, with N’Golo Kante, Jorginho, mason mount, ruben loftus-Cheek and the returning Conor Gallagher from a loan spell with Crystal Palace all seemingly ahead of Gilmour in the pecking order.
It has been suggested that lampard remains an admirer of the midfielder and would be keen to bring him to Everton this summer.
lampard gave Gilmour his first Premier league appearance in August 2019. one notable display came in the FA Cup in 2020 when he was influential in Chelsea overcoming liverpool.
Should that move materialise, Gilmour will hope he is trusted more by his ex-boss than he was at Norwich last season when he struggled under Daniel Farke before Dean Smith took over.