A large proportion of Chelsea fans on social media were adamant that Billy Gilmour be given another run-out against Arsenal on Wednesday.
Gilmour has started the previous two Premier League games, including last weekend’s win over Manchester City.
Three on the bounce would be a massive step for the young Scotsman and a huge boost for his Blues career.
Chelsea fans had every faith that he could step up again when the side host Arsenal in 48 hours’ time.
Here’s how they reacted on Twitter:
The 19-year-old is finally reaping the rewards of not leaving on loan in January.
Thomas Tuchel insisted Gilmour should remain in South West London and develop under his guidance.
Initially, this looked like a wasted opportunity for a talented individual to gain valuable minutes away from Chelsea.
However, the past ten days have proved that it was the correct decision after all.
Tuchel was extremely happy with his display in the win over Fulham, telling Chelsea TV post-match that: “He’s a confident guy, he’s well aware of his qualities, which is good.
“It was not necessary for him to convince me today because I’m already convinced, otherwise I would not have picked him for the line-up.”
Mateo Kovacic’s injury has helped Gilmour move up the central midfield rankings, with Tuchel looking to rotate and rest Jorginho or N’Golo Kante.
His performance away to City was mature beyond his teenage years, yet he showed a flash of inexperience when tripping up Gabriel Jesus in the penalty area.
Thankfully, Sergio Aguero missed the resulting spot kick and Gilmour’s blushes were spared.
He grew into the game and eventually ended up on the winning team, thanks to goals from Hakim Ziyech and Marcos Alonso.
With the FA Cup final looming on the horizon and players needing to be rested, it wouldn’t be the strangest decision to throw Gilmour straight back into the fire.
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
