Manchester United legend Roy Keane has joked that his daughter is stronger than Adam Lallana after the Liverpool midfielder was shown up by Chelsea’s Billy Gilmour in midweek.
Goals from Barkley and Willian sent Chelsea into the FA Cup quarter-finals and 18-year-old Gilmour was named man of the match after an outstanding display at Stamford Bridge.
Frank Lampard rewarded Gilmour with his full Premier League debut on Sunday and Keane poked fun at Adam Lallana as he advised the young Scot ahead of kick-off.
‘Keep it simple, keep the game simple and play what’s in front of you but judging him, I know it’s new to him, he looks like he’s pretty mature and pretty switched on,’ the former United captain said on Sky Sports.
‘I know when he was a young kid a lot of clubs were after him so he’s obviously got quality.
‘He’s got a good manager and hopefully some good senior professionals around him. I know it’s a young squad but all you need is one or two decent lads around you to help you along the way.
‘But it’ll be a big test for him today because in a strange way Everton may be a tougher test than the Liverpool game because I think Lallana was the midfielder the other night for Liverpool and my daughter is probably stronger than him.
‘It’s a tough test for him today.’
Asked whether it was an ‘easy decision’ to start Gilmour, Lampard said: ‘On one hand, yes, because he deserves to play, on the other hand we’ve got injuries and suspensions in the same area.
‘But I don’t want that to be the reason Billy’s playing. Billy’s playing because he’s trained well all season.
‘I said that pre-Liverpool he played very well and I expect more of the same and he’s young so I don’t want to heap too much on his shoulders but I believe in him and I believe in the midfield.
‘We’re young in there today but hopefully there’s a lot of energy and quality.’
