Roy Keane has warned Chelsea’s coaching staff not to overload Gilmour with information and advice after his breakout displays and believes it is important the midfielder is surrounded by the right people.
The young Scot followed up his good performance against Liverpool in the FA Cup with another man of the match display on his Premier League debut against Everton.
Gilmour bossed the midfield and is giving Frank Lampard a real selection headache as his first-teamers return from injury, and Keane says Chelsea must tread carefully with his development.
Speaking on Sky Sports after the match, Keane said: ‘There’s plenty of pitfalls ahead for him of course, if he gets carried away. He’s playing like he would in the streets with his mates.
‘I suppose the advice – not that I would give him, but the people around him – is leave him alone. Leave him just to get on with it.
‘Sometimes you get surrounded by some of the wrong people. Sometimes some of the coaching staff at the club can try and give him too much information.
‘I remember working with Brian Clough when I was coming through as a young player, they almost just left me alone, just learn your trade, keep going.
‘Give snippets of information, but don’t give too much information because he looks a clever kid, he looks intelligent.
‘Just let him get on with it. But obviously be careful of who he surrounds himself with in terms of agents and women and all that type of thing.’
On Gilmour’s performance against Everton, Roy Keane said: ‘Brilliant, brilliant. Having said that we could have played against Everton today.
‘We mentioned it earlier, the traits you’re looking from a midfielder. Obviously he’s always looking for the ball, he’s busy, he’s getting his head up, he’s passing the ball forward, his decision-making, he’s intelligent, his pace of the pass.
‘Even with his name, I like his name – he was always going to be a footballer with that name! Brilliant, I like everything about him. He must have a bit of Irish in him, I don’t know. His body language as well, he’s out there and he looks comfortable.’
