The future is unclear for Billy Gilmour as the Scots star is set to hold talks with Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel.
It comes as the star dropping to the Blues' U23 side while the first team continue with their pre-season tour of the US. The 21-year-old spent last season on loan at Norwich City but has recently opened up about some of the problems he endured during his time at Carrow Road. He managed 24 appearances for the Canaries across the domestic campaign but it ended in relegation with Gilmour often unfairly scapegoated by the home fans.
The Scotland international has been branded the country's golden boy after making his way into Chelsea' s first team at just 18 years old under the watchful eye of then boss Frank Lampard. He has since featured for Steve Clarke's Scotland side after making his way through the international ranks. Gilmour started all five 2022 World Cup qualifiers - against Denmark, Moldova, Austria, Israel and the Faroe Islands - being named man on the match in the 1-0 victory over Moldova at Hampden.
But the midfielder now looks to be entering a rough patch in his career as he looks ahead to the 2022/23 campaign. Record Sport have laid out how his season panned out last time out and what could be next for the Ayrshire man.
Nightmare at Norwich
Gilmour's time at Norwich City didn't quite work out as well as it could have with the side suffering relegation to the Championship at the end of the 2021/22 campaign. The 21-year-old also explained that he found his time at Carrow Road difficult after receiving a negative reaction from some fans in the crowd during clashes. The midfielder found it particularly hard as his family were forced to endure the comments which ultimately saw them stop going to games.
Speaking about his time at Norwich he said: "It was hard. It was also hard for my family. When you’ve got family in the stands and they’re shouting (abuse) it’s never nice, but I would just get my head down. Of course it’s not nice. They stopped coming to the games, so it wasn’t nice. They weren't coming down for games at the weekend, just staying in the house.
"It’s the fans’ opinion. They come to watch games and pay for their ticket and they shout but that has happened and it wasn’t nice to hear. I gave it my all, tried to work hard every game. It was a difficult season. I went there with the idea of trying to play my best and some games it worked and some games it didn’t, so I took some experience from that and it will help me going forward."
What next at Chelsea?
And now his future looks somewhat uncertain as he looks set to depart Stamford Bridge. Talks with Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel have been scheduled, but Gilmour looks out of favour ahead of the 2022/23 campaign as he has been demoted to the U23 squad as Chelsea continue their pre-season tour.
Gilmour is instead spending the summer away from the first team, remaining in London rather than travelling to Charlotte and Orlando, The Blues boss is unlikely to feature the 21-year-old in his first team squad this season and with game time a priority, Gilmour will likely be looking to get himself back out on loan for the upcoming campaign.
Former midfielder Simon Johnson reckons the midfielder needs first team minutes under his belt. Speaking on talkSPORT on Wednesday, he said: "I'd be very surprised if he isn't loaned somewhere else, because there just isn't room for him.
"These guys have got to be playing, I'm a big fan of Billy Gilmour's. He's top class and should really be out there playing regularly and not just sitting watching Jorginho and Kovacic and so on."
Where does Billy Gilmour's future lie?
It has been pretty plain sailing for far for the Scotland star. But it seems like things are becoming a little bit more difficult as he could be hunting for a new club this summer.
It is unlikely that Gilmour will return to Norwich for the upcoming season as Canaries boss Dean Smith has recruited Isaac Hayden from Newcastle on a season-long loan. The recently relegated side have also signed Gabriel Sara from Brazilian side Sao Paulo, meaning they are pretty much sorted in the middle of the park.
Everton manager Frank Lampard is said to be a big fan of the Scotland international so a loan move to Goodison Park could be on the cards. However, it is believed that Everton also have different midfielders on their radar this summer.
Chelsea will be careful about where they send Gilmour this season, with his current contract running up until the summer of 2024. But it is not just minutes this season that a good loan deal could provide; it could give him a permanent way out of Chelsea in the future as the midfielder looks to have fallen out of favour at Stamford Bridge.
READ NEXT
