Lampard still has faith in teenage star Gilmour

Frank Lampard insists his faith in Scotland U21 starlet Billy Gilmour has not wavered, despite replacing the midfielder at half-time in Chelsea’s FA Cup win over Leicester City on Sunday.

Former Rangers trainee Gilmour, Mason Mount and Reece James were all hooked at the break following a poor firsthalf performance and the move paid off after Ross Barkley notched the only goal of the game in a vastly-improved display after the interval.

Gilmour was one of the most talked about players in the English Premier League before football was halted on March 13, the 19-year-old picking up man-of-the-match awards in his first two starts in the FA Cup and league against Liverpool and Everton, respectively.

The playmaker was overlooked for the starting XI in the victories over Aston Villa and Manchester City when the action restarted before returning to the team against the Foxes.

Despite having a bad day at the office, Lampard is in no doubt the teenager still has a big future ahead of him.

He said: “With Billy, he was unfortunate that he didn’t start against Villa because his performances before lockdown against Liverpool and Everton were incredible, man-of-the-match performances in both.

“I have to have absolute sympathy with him but I have to be understanding of the fact he has not played for a long time.

“I brought him in for this game because he deserved it from his training and it was a difficult match when the whole performance was lethargic.

“For each one of the young players they will have found it hard and that’s just part of it.

“They are great young players and are going to be brilliant for this club, it’s just part of the experience for them.

“I don’t want to pick out the young lads who came off too much because that is part of their learning experience.

“They’ve all been great and they will all be great for this club but I just had to make some changes and it made a difference to the performance.”