Chelsea player ratings: Kepa, Barkley strong seconds behind Billy Gilmour
By George Perry
Billy Gilmour, Midfielder: 9.5
Where to begin? It’ll be quicker to talk about what Billy Gilmour didn’t do. He didn’t take any shots. He did everything else. And we should credit him for not taking any shots: he was properly playing the role of a deep midfielder, defending and covering transitions in both directions, rather than glory hunting at the top of the box.
Gilmour’s performance is not in any way inflated because of his age or his lack of experience at this level against teams like Liverpool. If a 27-year old multi-trophy winning international had played like Gilmour did, he, too, would receive all the same plaudits.
Gilmour went in hard for every tackle, whether he taking on a player coming through midfield or bailing out Ross Barkley enabling a subsequent free kick from the edge of Liverpool’s box. He brought the ball out of tight spaces to turn Chelsea onto the attack, a la Mateo Kovacic, while also knowing when to pass the ball back despite his obvious preference for always keeping the play moving upfield. He nutmegged Fabinho and then hit a perfectly angled and weighted pass to create a chance for Olivier Giroud. He was fearless without being reckless, physical without being rash and composed without being overconfident.
Jorginho’s suspension and Mateo Kovacic’s injury will keep Gilmour in the starting XI for at the least the next three games. Another performance or two like this, and Chelsea will be able to solve Juventus’ midfield problem by selling them the regista they so richly deserve.
Mateo Kovacic, Midfielder: 7
Chelsea’s midfield lost a lot in defence and transition after Kovacic went off in the 41′. Liverpool had a much easier second half than first half because they were able to play around Mason Mount in the press and then have one fewer Blue to interrupt them through midfield.
Kovacic will be a difficult injury for the Blues to cope with, so hopefully they can get by without him for a few games to ensure they have him the rest of the way.
Ross Barkley, Midfielder: 8.5
When Ross Barkley has seven defensive actions and a goal, you know you’re watching something special.
Barkley almost played against type by having such a complete performance, and by having so much variety in his game. Several times in the first half he passed up the long-range shot to instead play a short pass to a teammate. The passes didn’t always come off, but it showed a new variety to his game and made him harder to defend.
His timing on his goal was perfect, from how he picked up the ball to attracting defenders to letting Pedro draw a defender off to how and when he took the shot. Like Arrizabalaga, if this is a sign of what he’s been working on in training, then we really are seeing only the beginning of what Frank Lampard has been building.