In Focus: Chelsea loanee Gilmour finally taking flight with Canaries

Billy Gilmour’s season-long loan from Chelsea to Norwich has not gone as smoothly as either club would have hoped.

A loss of form, managerial change and injury woes have made it a tough stint at Carrow Road for the highly-rated Scot.

As the Canaries prepare to host the Blues tomorrow evening — a game which Gilmour is ineligible to feature in — we take a closer look at his stop-start campaign and what his future may hold.

Big reputation

News of Gilmour’s temporary switch to East Anglia raised plenty of eyebrows last summer, with most pundits suggesting the newly-promoted side had pulled off a real coup.

His occasional cameos at Stamford Bridge had always gained plaudits, but it was his displays for Scotland at Euro 2020 that really threw him into the spotlight.

He was handed his first international start against old foes England at Wembley in just his third cap.

Not to be intimidated by a hostile crowd, Gilmour put in an all-action, man-of-the-match display in a well-deserved goalless draw that left onlookers around the globe purring over the tenacious 20-year-old.

Farke’s fancy

Given the buzz surrounding him, Gilmour could arguably have taken an easier route than joining a team widely expected to finish in the top-flight’s relegation zone.

Yet his ambitions of breaking into the Chelsea starting XI as quickly as possible left him needing to find a team committed to a possession-based approach.

Having dominated their way to the Championship title in 2020-21, Daniel Farke’s Norwich appeared to fit the bill perfectly.

Gilmour told the club’s website upon joining: “I’ve been looking forward to coming here, playing as much as possible and helping Norwich compete in the Premier League.

“I spoke to the manager here. He called me and we had a nice talk about how he wants to play and how he sees me fitting in. Everything he said was what I want to do on the pitch, get the ball down and play nice football.”

Difficult start

However, after starting four of Norwich’s first five league games, Gilmour found himself dropped to the bench by Farke.

Despite impressing for Scotland against Israel in the October international break, there was no immediate recall at club level.

That led the Canaries coach to clarify the situation publicly a week later.

Farke said: “We are not here to develop players for other clubs.

“Billy is a fantastic player, a fantastic human being and of course he wants to play each and every second.

“If you love football, you love Billy Gilmour because this guy is a baller, but he is also a young lad and we have to look after him.”

Even though praise was forthcoming, Gilmour would not play another minute until the German’s sacking following a 2-1 win at Brentford.

Smith the saviour

With a new manager often comes new beginnings — and ex-Aston Villa boss Dean Smith wasted no time bringing Gilmour back in from the cold.

Just as he did at Euro 2020, the Scot instantly justified his manager’s decision by assisting Grant Hanley’s winner in Smith’s first game against Southampton.

Since the 50-year-old’s arrival, Gilmour has featured in 13 of 16 top-flight games, only missing out against West Ham, Everton and Watford due to an ankle injury.

This week, Smith lavished praise on his loanee’s application and attitude.

Smith said: “Billy is first out on the training ground and the last off. He has just got a love for football. He is well-liked within the dressing room by staff and players.

“He has come to a different type of football club. What I mean by that is Chelsea go into most games and dominate possession, whereas Norwich as a club, us going into the Premier League, there is going to be better [opposition] players than we have got in the squad at times.

“He has had to learn another side to the game, and I think if you asked him he would say he has learnt and become a better all round player because of that.”

Final push

Though Norwich remain bottom of the division, Gilmour has now established himself as a regular starter in a side still clinging on to an outside chance of survival.

Once Thursday’s Chelsea clash has been and gone, there are 10 games left to save Norwich’s Premier League status.

While loans for fellow Blues youngsters such as Conor Gallagher and Armando Broja have unquestionably been more spectacular, Gilmour’s stint will have proved just as educational.

Having shown himself capable of overcoming adversity early in his stint, it is now time for the young Scot to bring his best form to the table and help the Canaries defy the drop against the odds.