Chelsea urged to follow Foden example with Gilmour

Despite reports linking Billy Gilmour with a summer exit, Graeme Souness has urged Chelsea to take a leaf out of Manchester City’s book instead.

Graeme Souness believes the way Phil Foden has developed at Manchester City serves as an example for Billy Gilmour.

Chelsea may reportedly allow Gilmour a chance to leave on loan for next season. The Blues rate him highly, but feel he needs more first-team football under his belt. Moves to Premier League clubs Wolves and Norwich City, along with Scottish champions Rangers, are possible options.

But Souness, who won five English league titles and three European crowns at Liverpool during his own playing career, reckons his fellow Scot should stay at Stamford Bridge for his development.

“I’d personally keep him at Chelsea,” the former Scotland international told Sky Sports.

“I think Jorginho has to be looking over his shoulder. He’ll be challenging him more than anyone else. I look at Phil Foden at City and Pep [Guardiola] didn’t let him go out on loan.

“I look back on my own career and think how did I improve – there was no words of wisdom, no sentence any coach said to me, there was no watershed moment in my career where I turned a corner.

“What made me better, I was 23, went to Liverpool, arguably the best team in the world – certainly the best team in Europe – and I was playing with fabulous players in training every single day.

“I learnt to think quicker, to improve my touch, move the ball quicker and just being around winners – Chelsea have got bundles of them – that will improve him more than playing in a lesser team where it’s a battle every week. That’s how I see it, Phil Foden is an argument for that.”

Foden, who is a year older than Gilmour at 21, enjoyed more opportunities at City last season following David Silva’s exit. In fact, he frequently got the nod over Raheem Sterling.

The midfielder’s impressive performances won him the Premier League and PFA’s Young Player of the Year awards.