Billy Gilmour

For other people with similar names, see Bill Gilmour (disambiguation).

Billy Gilmour

Gilmour playing for Norwich City in 2021
Personal information
Full name	Billy Clifford Gilmour [1]
Date of birth	(2001-06-11) 11 June 2001 (age 23) [2]
Place of birth	Irvine, Scotland [3]
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) [3]
Position(s)	Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team	Napoli
Number	6
Youth career
2009–2017	Rangers
2017–2019	Chelsea
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2019–2022	Chelsea	11	(0)
2021–2022	→ Norwich City (loan)	24	(0)
2022–2024	Brighton & Hove Albion	46	(0)
2024–	Napoli	8	(0)
International career‡
2015–2016	Scotland U15	1	(0)
2016–2017	Scotland U16	1	(0)
2017–2018	Scotland U17	7	(2)
2017–2019	Scotland U19	7	(3)
2018–2021	Scotland U21	12	(1)
2019–	Scotland	34	(2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 23:07, 3 November 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 15 October 2024

Billy Clifford Gilmour (born 12 June 2001) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Serie A club Napoli and the Scotland national team. He is considered one of the best players in association football for Scotland, particularly in relation to his passing skills and his style of midfield play. ^{[4] [5]}

Gilmour spent three months at a young age with Celtic before moving to Rangers, ^[6] where he developed in the club's academy and trained with the first-team squad at the age of 15. He joined Chelsea in 2017 after turning down a professional contract with Rangers, made 22 appearances, and was on the bench for their UEFA Champions League and FA Cup finals in 2021. He spent a season on loan at Norwich City where the club were relegated, before he signed with Brighton & Hove Albion on a permanent basis in September 2022. Gilmour signed for Italian side Napoli on a permanent deal on deadline day in August 2024.

Gilmour represented Scotland at all youth level from under-15, under-16, under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels before making his senior debut in 2021. He was selected for their Euro 2020 squad later that year.

Early life

Gilmour was born on 11 June 2001 at Ayrshire Central Hospital in Irvine, Ayrshire ^[3] and resided in Ardrossan, North Ayrshire. His father, William Gilmour, served with the Royal Navy and played junior football for Ardrossan Winton Rovers.

Gilmour attended Stanley Primary School in Ardrossan and Grange Academy in Kilmarnock, ^[7] where he was part of the Scottish Football Association (SFA) Performance School programme. ^{[8] [9]}

He listed Cesc Fàbregas, Luka Modrić and Andrés Iniesta as his football role models. ^[10]

Club career

Rangers

Gilmour spent three months at a young age with Celtic, before moving to Rangers due to the logistics of attending training. ^[6] He made his debut for the under-20 development team in December 2016 at the age of 15, and was invited to train with the first-team squad the following month by manager Mark Warburton. ^{[11] [12]} Gilmour was given a squad number and, following Warburton's departure from the club, was twice included in the provisional squad for the Scottish Cup matches by Rangers caretaker manager Graeme Murty. ^[13]

The next Rangers manager, Pedro Caixinha, described Gilmour as a player with a "bright future" and held talks with the player's family in an attempt to persuade him to stay with the club. ^{[14] [15]} Rangers, however, announced in May 2017 that they had reached an agreement for Gilmour to join Chelsea for a "significant fee". ^[16] Reports suggested that Chelsea would pay an initial development fee of around £500,000, with potential further payments dependent on his progress. ^[17] SFA Performance Director Malky Mackay had advised Gilmour and his family that he should stay at Rangers, as he would have had more chance of gaining first team experience. Mackay said, "I really hope he goes out on loan quickly to someone and keeps progressing". ^[18]

Chelsea

Youth

Gilmour became officially contracted to Chelsea in July 2017, following his 16th birthday. ^[19] He joined the club's under-18 squad, making a goalscoring debut in an Under-18 Premier League match against Arsenal during September 2017, ^[20] and going on to score in each of his first three appearances. ^[21] In July 2018, after turning 17, Gilmour signed his first professional contract with Chelsea. ^[22]

2019–20

Gilmour playing for Chelsea in 2019

Newly-appointed Chelsea manager Frank Lampard gave Gilmour his senior debut on 10 July 2019, in a pre-season friendly against Bohemians in Dublin. ^[23] His first appearance in a competitive matchday squad for the first-team came in the 2019 UEFA Super Cup against Liverpool, when he was an unused substitute. ^[24]

He made his Premier League debut on 31 August against Sheffield United, coming on in the 84th minute for Tammy Abraham. He made his full debut on 25 September, playing the full 90 minutes in a 7–1 EFL Cup win against Grimsby Town. ^[25] Gilmour was added to the Chelsea first-team squad on a permanent basis in February 2020. ^[26] He was widely praised for his performance in a 2–0 win against Liverpool in an FA Cup tie on 3 March. ^[27] Gilmour later made his first Premier League start later that week on 8 March against Everton, earning Man of the Match honours in a 4–0 win. ^[28] He did not play much for the next six months or so, due to the lockdown caused by COVID-19 and a knee injury. ^[29] Gilmour made 11 appearances for the Chelsea first team during the 2019–20 season. ^[30]

2020–21

In September 2020, Gilmour took the 23 squad number for 2020–21 season after Michy Batshuayi returned to Crystal Palace on loan. ^[31] Gilmour returned to the Chelsea starting lineup on 8 December 2020, when he made his first Champions League start in a 1–1 draw with Krasnodar. ^[32] Under Thomas Tuchel, Gilmour featured periodically. He was an unused substitute as Chelsea defeated Manchester City 1–0 in the 2021 UEFA Champions League Final on 29 May. ^[33]

2021–22: loan to Norwich City

In July 2021, Gilmour joined fellow Premier League club Norwich City on a season-long loan. ^[34] Gilmour cited fellow Scotland international Grant Hanley as an influencing factor in his decision to join the club. ^[35] He played 28 times for Norwich during the 2021–22 season, but the team finished last in the 2021–22 Premier League and were relegated. ^[36]

In June 2022, Chelsea exercised an option to extend Gilmour's contract to the end of the 2023–24 season. ^[36]

Brighton & Hove Albion

On 1 September 2022, Gilmour transferred to fellow Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion on a four-year deal. ^[37] He made his debut three days later, coming on as a 93rd-minute substitute for Moisés Caicedo in the 5–2 home win over Leicester. ^[38] Gilmour made his first Brighton start on 9 November, playing the whole match of the 3–1 EFL Cup third round victory away at Arsenal, assisting Tariq Lamptey's goal. ^[39] His first Premier League start for Brighton came on his sixth appearance, playing the whole match and picking up a yellow card in the 4–2 home loss against Arsenal on 31 December. ^[40]

After almost three months without an appearance, on 29 April 2023, Gilmour played the whole of the 6–0 home thrashing of Wolverhampton Wanderers, Brighton's biggest Premier League victory; ^[41] he was also selected to start in subsequent wins over Manchester United at home and Arsenal away. ^[42] On 18 May, Gilmour made his first goal involvement for the "Seagulls" after assisting Deniz Undav's goal in the 4–1 loss against Newcastle United. ^[43]

Napoli

On 30 August 2024, Gilmour joined Serie A side Napoli, signing a five-year contract for a reported transfer fee of £12 million plus £4 million in add-ons. ^[44] His international teammate Scott McTominay joined Napoli from Manchester United on the same day. ^[45]

International career

Gilmour playing for Scotland U19 in 2019

Gilmour played for the Scotland under-16s in the 2016 Victory Shield tournament. ^[46] He made his Scotland under-17 debut against Italy in August 2017, and scored his first international goal in a 2–1 defeat against England two days later. ^{[47] [48]} Under-21 debut followed when he featured in a 1–0 win against France at the 2018 Toulon Tournament, ^[49] and won the Revelation of the Tournament award after helping Scotland to a fourth-placed finish. ^[50]

Gilmour was included in the Scotland for UEFA Euro 2020 by Steve Clarke. ^[51] He made his full international debut on 2 June 2021, coming off the bench in the 81st minute of a pre-tournament friendly against the Netherlands. ^[52] Gilmour made his first start for Scotland in a goalless draw against England on 18 June, ^[53] and was awarded man of the match by UEFA. ^{[54] [55] [56]} He then tested positive for COVID-19, meaning that he missed Scotland's final group game against Croatia. ^{[57] [58] [59]}

Gilmour remained in the squad for Scotland's continuing 2022 World Cup qualifiers in September, starting all five games against Denmark, Moldova, Austria, Israel and the Faroe Islands. His performances were widely acclaimed, with him winning man of the match in the 1–0 victory over Moldova at Hampden. ^[60]

On 17 October 2023, Gilmour scored his first career goal in a 4–1 friendly loss to France in Lille. ^[61]

On 7 June 2024, Gilmour was named in Scotland's squad for the UEFA Euro 2024 finals in Germany. ^[62] A week later, he came on as a 67th-minute substitute for Callum McGregor in the opening match of the tournament, where Scotland lost 5–1 to hosts Germany. ^[63] He went on to start against both Switzerland and Hungary as Scotland finished bottom of Group A with one point from three matches. ^{[64] [65]}

Personal life

In May 2023, TikTok model Orla Melissa Sloan pleaded guilty to stalking Gilmour and his former Chelsea teammate Mason Mount, as well as harassing Ben Chilwell. ^{[66] [67]}

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 3 November 2024 ^[68]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup [lower-alpha 1]		League cup [lower-alpha 2]		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Chelsea U23	2018–19	—			—		—		—		5 [lower-alpha 3]	0	5	0
	2019–20	—			—		—		—		2 [lower-alpha 3]	0	2	0
	2020–21	—			—		—		—		1 [lower-alpha 3]	0	1	0
	Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	0	8	0
Chelsea	2019–20 [69]	Premier League	6	0	3	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	11	0
	2020–21 [70]		5	0	4	0	0	0	2 [lower-alpha 4]	0	—		11	0
	Total		11	0	7	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	22	0
Norwich City (loan)	2021–22 [71]	Premier League	24	0	2	0	2	0	—		—		28	0
Brighton & Hove Albion	2022–23 [72]	Premier League	14	0	1	0	2	0	—		—		17	0
	2023–24 [73]		30	0	2	0	1	0	8 [lower-alpha 5]	0	—		41	0
	2024–25 [74]		2	0	—		0	0	—		—		2	0
	Total		46	0	3	0	3	0	8	0	0	0	60	0
Napoli	2024–25 [74]	Serie A	8	0	1	0	—		—		—		9	0
Career total			89	0	13	0	7	0	10	0	8	0	127	0

1. Includes FA Cup, Coppa Italia
2. Includes EFL Cup
3. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
4. Appearances in UEFA Champions League
5. Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International

As of match played 15 October 2024 ^{[75] [76]}

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Scotland	2021	10	0
	2022	6	0
	2023	7	1
	2024	11	1
Total		34	2

Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gilmour goal.

List of international goals scored by Billy Gilmour

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	17 October 2023	Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France	22	France	1–0	1–4	Friendly
2	5 September 2024	Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland	31	Poland	1–2	2–3	2024–25 UEFA Nations League A

Honours

Chelsea Youth

• U18 Premier League: 2017–18^{[ citation needed ]}
• FA Youth Cup: 2017–18 ^{[ citation needed ]}

Chelsea

• UEFA Champions League: 2020–21 ^[77]
• FA Cup runner-up: 2020–21 ^[78]

Individual

• Toulon Tournament Breakthrough of the Tournament: 2018
• Toulon Tournament Best XI: 2018 ^[79]
• Chelsea Academy Player of the Year: 2019–20 ^[80]

References

1. "Updated squads for 2017/18 Premier League confirmed". Premier League. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
2. UEFA.com. "Billy Gilmour | Scotland | UEFA Nations League". UEFA.com. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
3. "Billy Gilmour". Chelsea F.C.
4. Ronay, Barney (19 June 2024). "Scotland learn to use Billy Gilmour's talents and reap the rewards". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
5. "How 'fabulous' Billy Gilmour helped spark Scotland revival". BBC Sport. 19 June 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
6. Irvine, David (20 June 2022). "Celtic would be ideal move for Billy Gilmour, but he wouldn't go because of Rangers allegiance, claims pundit". The National. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
7. Scotland players' old schools send good luck messages, Henry Hepburn, TES (magazine), 11 June 2021
8. Walker, Mark (16 October 2019). "Scotland and Chelsea's Billy Gilmour 'ahead of plan' but remains rooted in reality". The Times. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
9. Malky Mackay on why 'four stone wet through and five feet high' Rangers kid was always destined to be a star, Stephen Halliday, The Scotsman, 28 May 2021
10. Prada, Jon; Chappelle, Gregor (20 June 2021). "Billy Gilmour: The Scottish kid who lit up Wembley Stadium". Marca . Archived from the original on 20 June 2021. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
11. Bairner, Robin (9 May 2017). "Meet Rangers wonderkid Billy Gilmour: The starlet Chelsea have beaten Arsenal and Manchester United to". Goal.com. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
12. "Billy Gilmour shares his delight after training with Rangers first-team squad". Daily Record. Glasgow. 25 January 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
13. Jack, Christopher (2 April 2017). "Graeme Murty hopes Rangers can fend off interest from Chelsea in midfield star Billy Gilmour". Glasgow Times. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
14. Newport, Andy (30 March 2017). "Caixinha reveals he's met Billy Gilmour's parents in bid to keep ace at Rangers". Daily Record. Glasgow. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
15. "Gilmour set for Chelsea move – unless Gers succeed in last-ditch talks". The Independent. London. 30 March 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
16. "Rangers: Youth prospect Billy Gilmour opts for summer switch to Chelsea". BBC Sport. 9 May 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
17. Yew, Oliver (10 May 2017). "Who is Chelsea new-boy Billy Gilmour?". Sky Sports. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
18. "Malky Mackay: 'Billy Gilmour could have emulated Barry Ferguson at Rangers'". BBC Sport. 14 August 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
19. Amako, Uche (4 July 2017). "Billy Gilmour signs Chelsea contract two months after agreeing to leave Rangers". Daily Express. London. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
20. Forbes, Craig (11 September 2017). "Billy Gilmour impresses in goalscoring Chelsea debut". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
21. McDougall, Mark (30 September 2017). "Former Rangers kid Billy Gilmour scores third goal in three games for Chelsea". Daily Record. Glasgow. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
22. "Billy Gilmour: Former Rangers youth signs first professional contract at Chelsea". BBC Sport. 5 July 2018. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
23. Bryce, Liam (10 July 2019). "Billy Gilmour makes Chelsea debut as ex-Rangers prospect given the nod". Daily Record. Glasgow. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
24. "Liverpool-Chelsea | Line-ups | UEFA-Super Cup". UEFA . Retrieved 9 June 2020.
25. "Chelsea 7–1 Grimsby Town: Reece James impresses on debut". 25 September 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
26. "Billy Gilmour: Chelsea midfielder now with first team full time". BBC Sport. 11 February 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2020.
27. Duncan, Thomas (4 March 2020). "Billy Gilmour: Chelsea's Scottish teenager 'incredible' in Liverpool win". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
28. "Match Report: Chelsea vs Everton". Chelsea F.C. 9 March 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
29. Steinberg, Jacob (9 July 2020). "Chelsea fear Billy Gilmour will miss rest of season with knee injury". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
30. "Juventus and Napoli keeping tabs on Chelsea youngster". footballexpress.in. 6 December 2020.
31. "Contract extension and Premier League loan for Batshuayi". Chelsea F.C. 10 September 2020. Retrieved 10 September 2020.
32. "Billy Gilmour: Chelsea boss Frank Lampard hails 'outstanding' midfielder on return in Krasnodar draw". Sky Sports. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
33. "Chelsea won the Champions League for the second time with a fully deserved victory over Manchester City in the all-Premier League confrontation in Porto". BBC. 29 May 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
34. "Norwich sign Chelsea's Gilmour on loan". BBC Sport. 2 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
35. "Billy Gilmour explains Norwich City loan move". NotTheOldFirm. 4 July 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
36. Cassidy, Peter (13 June 2022). "Scotland star Billy Gilmour signs new deal at Chelsea until 2024". STV Sport. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
37. "Billy Gilmour signs from Chelsea". Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. 1 September 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
38. "Brighton 5-2 Leicester: Graham Potter's side maintain excellent start to Premier League season". BBC Sport. 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
39. "Carabao Cup: Arsenal 1-3 Brighton - Seagulls move into last 16 with win at Emirates Stadium". BBC Sport. 9 November 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
40. "Brave Albion beaten by the leaders". Brighton & Hove Albion. 31 December 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
41. "Back on track with six of the best". Brighton & Hove Albion. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
42. Smith, Andrew (16 May 2023). "Smokin' hot Billy Gilmour - Scottish tall tales and what recent Brighton rebirth means for Rangers and Celtic chat and national team". The Scotsman. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
43. Shread, Joe (19 May 2023). "Newcastle 4-1 Brighton: Magpies one win from Champions League after thrashing lacklustre Seagulls". Sky Sports.
44. Campbell, Jordan; Naylor, Andy (30 August 2024). "Billy Gilmour to join Napoli from Brighton". The New York Times.
45. "Transfer news: Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour sign for Napoli". BBC Sport. 30 August 2024.
46. "Under-16 Victory Shield squad announced". Scottish FA. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
47. "Billy Gilmour – U17 squad matches". Scottish FA. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
48. "Ex-Rangers wonderkid Billy Gilmour scores as Scotland U17s are beaten by England". Daily Record. Glasgow. 20 August 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
49. "Scotland stun hosts France to record Toulon win". Scottish Football Association. 30 May 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
50. "Individual awards for Billy Gilmour and Michael Johnston seal successful Toulon trip". Scottish Football Association. 10 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
51. "Scotland include Gilmour, Patterson & Turnbull for Euro finals". BBC Sport. BBC. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
52. "Billy Gilmour makes Scotland debut in Netherlands draw". Chelsea FC. 3 June 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
53. Pasztor, David (19 June 2021). "Billy Gilmour 'so proud' of full debut as Scotland promise to nurture him properly". SB Nation . Archived from the original on 19 June 2021.
54. "Every Euro 2020 Star of the Match". uefa.com. UEFA. 18 June 2021. Archived from the original on 19 June 2021.
55. Murray, Ewan (18 June 2021). "Scotland's Billy Gilmour catches the eye with star turn against England". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 19 June 2021.
56. "Billy Gilmour the star of the match for Scottland against England". Football Express. 21 June 2021.
57. "Scotland Squad Update – Monday 21 June". Scottish FA. 21 June 2021.
58. "Billy Gilmour: Scotland midfielder tests positive for Covid-19". BBC. 21 June 2021.
59. "Billy Gilmour: Scotland midfielder tests positive for Covid-19". Sky Sports. 21 June 2021.
60. "Chelsea wonderkid Gilmour wins Man of the Match award with classy performance on international duty". Caught Offside. 5 September 2021. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021.
61. "France fight back from goal-down to beat Scotland comfortably in Lille". STV. 17 October 2023.
62. "Record-breaking goalkeeper Gordon out of Scotland's Euro 2024 squad". Reuters. 7 June 2024. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
63. "Ruthless Germany humble 10-man Scotland in Euro 2024 opener". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
64. "Scotland 1-1 Switzerland: Clarke's men keep Group A hopes alive". UEFA. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
65. "Scotland vs Hungary: Line-ups". UEFA. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
66. Hunter, Ross (24 May 2023). "TikTok influencer admits to stalking Scots football star Billy Gilmour". The National.
67. Kirk, Tristan (25 May 2023). "Premier League stars Mason Mount and Billy Gilmour stalked by model". Evening Standard.
68. B. Gilmour, Soccerway
69. "Games played by Billy Gilmour in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
70. "Games played by Billy Gilmour in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 10 September 2020.
71. "Games played by Billy Gilmour in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
72. "Games played by Billy Gilmour in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
73. "Games played by Billy Gilmour in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 August 2023.
74. "Games played by Billy Gilmour in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
75. "Billy Gilmour". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
76. Billy Gilmour at the Scottish Football Association
77. McNulty, Phil (29 May 2021). "Man. City 0–1 Chelsea". BBC Sport. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
78. McNulty, Phil (15 May 2021). "Chelsea 0–1 Leicester City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
79. "L'équipe type du Festival International Espoirs 2018". www.festival-foot-espoirs.com. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
80. "Gilmour named Chelsea Academy Player of the Season". Chelsea F.C. 25 August 2020.

External links

• Profile at the SSC Napoli website
• Billy Gilmour at the Scottish Football Association
• Billy Gilmour at Premier League
• Billy Gilmour – UEFA competition record ( archive )