Chelsea are reportedly set to steal a march on their rivals and other top European clubs as they close in on Rangers teenager Billy Gilmour
ESPN have reported that Chelsea are close to sealing a deal for Rangers teenager Billy Gilmour. The 15-year-old midfielder, who has been courted by a host of top European clubs, is closing in on a move to Chelsea with the Blues set to beat their competition and land the sensation.
Billy Gilmour is widely recognised as one of the best young talents in Europe right now with impressive performances for both the under-17 squad at Rangers as well as representing Scotland at the Under-17 level.
ESPN: Chelsa offering Rangers £500,000 for 15 y/o Billy Gilmour
Also watched by Barca, Bayern, Man United and Man City. pic.twitter.com/GSy22ffgsG
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The 15-year-old is hot property in the footballing world with top clubs like Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Manchester United all interested in the player. Each of these clubs have reportedly been sending their representatives to watch the teenager in action.
And now, Chelsea are leading the race to sign the player. The report iterates that the player spent the last week in London for talks with Chelsea, to tour and take a better look at the facilities at Stamford Bridge. Gilmour is under a youth contract at Rangers until the end of the season.
After the end of the season, the potential suitors are free to negotiate directly with the player for a measly compensation fee. But, Chelsea appear to be unwilling to wait that long with the prospect of facing widespread competition for the player from other European clubs.
Watch the highlights of Billy Gilmour:
The English Premier League table-toppers have reportedly offered the Scottish club a fee of £500,000 to find an agreement over the transfer for a player now, with the aim of beating their competition to the other suitors.
Although, given Chelsea’s poor history of providing youth a chance and look-in into the first-team, Billy Gilmour may either stay put or wait for offers from other interested parties. Still, the arrival of Antonio Conte and the emergence of Victor Moses may just herald a change in Chelsea’s approach of loaning youngsters out instead of giving them an extended chance in the first-team setup.
