Thomas Tuchel advised Billy Gilmour to leave Chelsea for Brighton because he thought the Scotland international would benefit from playing under Graham Potter, according to reports.
Gilmour, 21, completed a £9million move to the Seagulls on deadline day, only for Potter to replace Tuchel as Chelsea manager eight days later. The midfielder ended up playing just five minutes of football under the Englishman before he was offered the Blues job.
Gilmour, who signed a four-year deal at the Amex, even spoke about his excitement at playing under Potter. "For me, Brighton play great football and a style I like to play, nice passing," he said. "The manager is highly thought of as well, he's really good."
Yet Gilmour won't get the chance to flourish under Potter after all - and the bad news doesn't stop there. According to The Athletic, Chelsea wanted to keep the youngster on their books but opted to sell him after Tuchel confirmed he wasn't part of his plans.
Tuchel reportedly encouraged Gilmour to move to Brighton to develop his game under Potter, viewed as the ideal coach for the developing midfielder. As it turned out, Gilmour would've got the chance to play under Potter long-term if he had stayed where he was.
It's believed Chelsea's owners were not keen on selling the Scot and even told him to stay at Stamford Bridge. Blues chair Todd Boehly is even thought to have told Gilmour he would of eventually become a regular for the two-time European champions.
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Even if that didn't happen, a January transfer was always on the table. After all, there are only 11 rounds of Premier League fixtures scheduled to take place before the new year because of the World Cup taking place in Qatar in November and December.
Yet it's claimed Gilmour was unwavering in his desire to leave Stamford Bridge. It remains unclear whether the youngster would've changed his mind if he knew Potter was going to leave Brighton for Chelsea after the next Premier League fixture.
Gilmour will be keen to get his career back on track after a difficult season on loan at Norwich. The Scot was viewed as one of the best young midfielders in the Premier League when he emerged at Chelsea under ex-boss Frank Lampard during the 2019/20 campaign.
Gilmour went on to win the Champions League at Chelsea in May 2021 and was named as UEFA's Star of the Match for the Euro 2020 fixture between Scotland and England last summer. He was also crowned Chelsea's Academy Player of the Year in 2020.
The midfielder struggled during his loan spell at Norwich, playing 24 Premier League games as they were relegated. Gilmour was described as Norwich's "scapegoat" that season because many critics expected him to perform consistently well at Carrow Road.
"I can't understand all the criticism, even blame, that seemed to be directed towards him at Norwich during their unsuccessful fight against relegation," talkSPORT pundit Gabby Agbonlahor said of Gilmour. "Did people expect that he would almost keep them up on his own after moving from Chelsea? I just guess that sometimes a scapegoat is needed."
