Former Chelsea star Pat Nevin believes Napoli midfielder Billy Gilmour can do ‘huge things in football’ and says he would not look out of place at Manchester City or Arsenal.
Gilmour moved to Chelsea in 2017 after turning down a professional contract offer at Rangers, but was not really afforded thr trust to shine for the club before permanently leaving for Brighton for £10 million in 2022.
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Pat Nevin on Billy Gilmour fitting at Arsenal and City
“I knew about Billy Gilmour before he joined Chelsea when he was at Rangers, but most people first remember his game against Liverpool where he dominated the match,” Nevin said to BetVictor.
“I see a lot of him for Scotland and all the teams he’s played for and I believe that if you put him in the centre of midfield for Arsenal or Manchester City, he’d be just fine.
‘He’s a good enough player to play there and it’d make sense. He’s got the technical ability to do huge things in football. He holds the ball as well as any other player.’
Looking back at Gilmour’s Chelsea career, Nevin added: ‘Billy was coming through at Chelsea when Jorginho was in the centre of midfield.
‘Jorginho is a player who used to get a lot of stick from Chelsea fans and I used to tell people that he’d get into Manchester City’s midfield.
‘People would argue that he didn’t score goals or do other parts of the game, but he was adored by those who understood his style
‘It was no surprise to me when he went to Arsenal, and I’d feel exactly the same about Billy. If the next move he gets is way up the ladder, I won’t be surprised.
‘The only thing holding him back, and the only reason he’s not moving anywhere for £100million, is because he doesn’t create and score goals.
‘He is world-class at all other parts of the game, but that extra bit is what stops him getting that move.
‘We’ve seen lots of midfielders like that, Mateo Kovacic was another during his time at Chelsea, who are held back by their lack of goal contributions.
‘Some players are also looked upon differently because they’ve moved around a bit.
‘If he had stayed at one club which suited him well, then he’d have played week-in week-out for four or five years, and he’d be even better than he is.’
Billy Gilmour joined Napoli for £12 million plus an additional £4 million add ons. He has quickly established himself as an important player under Antonio Conte and still only 23, his best days are surely ahead of him if things go well.
