ERIN CUTHBERT: My pal Billy Gilmour showed exactly why Thomas Tuchel trusted him in Chelsea’s Champions League squad… now he can shine for Scotland at Euro 2020
Erin Cuthbert has backed Billy Gilmour to cap his rapid rise by running Scotland’s midfield at Euro 2020 if called upon.
The national team duo have a remarkably similar back story, both hailing from Ayrshire and signing for Rangers as youths before joining Chelsea.
The pair have worked their way into the first teams with club and country and both reached the Champions League final this season with the Stamford Bridge club.
Billy Gilmour has been backed to shine at this summer’s Euro 2020 by club-mate Erin Cuthbert
Cuthbert’s side lost 4-0 to Barcelona in Gothenburg but the attacker watched in delight as 19-year-old Gilmour picked up a winner’s medal as the Blues beat Manchester City 1-0.
Gilmour went on to make his first two senior Scotland appearances against the Netherlands and Luxembourg and, should Clarke give him the nod during Euro 2020, Cuthbert would have total faith in him to deliver.
‘I was delighted for Billy when Chelsea won the Champions League — then, to top it off, he was selected by Scotland for the Euros,’ she told Sportsmail.
‘It must have been a dream week for Billy. We are always in contact and I’ll make sure I wish him well ahead of the tournament.
‘Everyone knows that Billy is a special talent. I remember watching him for Chelsea against Liverpool and he came in and bossed the midfield.
Erin Cuthbert has had a similar experience to Gilmour, and both now play for Chelsea
‘It was like he was a senior player. He automatically commanded respect by demanding the ball and directing players like Jorginho where he wanted the ball. He was managing the midfield.
‘Thomas Tuchel has said how incredibly happy he is with Billy. He would not be in the Champions League final squad if Tuchel did not trust him.
‘If Billy is called upon during the Euros he will be ready to command the Scotland midfield.’
Cuthbert, who hails from Irvine, admits it has been a huge help having Ardrossan’s Gilmour as a Chelsea club-mate.
She smiled: ‘It’s nice to hear a Scottish accent in London and to have someone who gets the Scottish banter.
Steve Clarke’s men are in a group alongside England, Croatia and the Czech Republic
‘We’ve got a similar story. We came to Chelsea at a young age, we never got it easy, we had to work for everything and we always had to fight for our place in the first team.
‘We were even joking that if we both won the Champions League this season we could have our own open-top bus in London. We were making up our own rules!
‘Unfortunately, our Champions League final against Barcelona didn’t go the way we wanted — but I was buzzing for Billy.’