Chelsea

Chelsea

Premier League • England

Todd Boehly failed in key deadline day meeting to change Chelsea star’s mind after offering possible Tuchel hint

Billy Gilmour, Scotland training camp May 2022

Billy Gilmour was advised by Todd Boehly on deadline day that he should stay at Chelsea before he ended up moving to Brighton, a report has revealed.

Of all the players who could have questions after the sacking of Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea, Gilmour will be among those having the most thoughts. He left the Blues for Brighton on deadline day, only to see the head coach sacked.

Coincidentally, Chelsea raided Brighton to appoint Graham Potter as Tuchel’s replacement. Potter had been one of the persuading factors in Gilmour choosing Brighton as his next destination, thanks to his reputation for developing young players.

It has already been revealed that Gilmour wasn’t sure about leaving Chelsea until a conversation with Tuchel.

But now details have emerged of a different conversation – with owner Boehly – that could have prompted a decision the other way.

According to The Athletic, Boehly and other members of the ownership group had a meeting with Gilmour on deadline day. During the talks, they told him they wanted him to stay at Stamford Bridge.

They even may have implied to him that the situation regarding his gametime could change, perhaps hinting that the end was near for Tuchel. The German coach was not necessarily a major supporter of Gilmour, but Potter likes him.

Ironically, though, their paths have now diverged. Chelsea eventually buckled and Gilmour decided to favour Tuchel’s advice to leave. What’s more, he agreed with Chelsea that in the circumstances of his exit, he should be leaving permanently.

Alternatively, Boehly may have preferred Gilmour to bide his time, with the option of a January exit if things weren’t looking up. As it happened, though, Gilmour never played for Chelsea again after the contract extension he signed in the summer.

Now, his future is fully out of their control. Gilmour will be a Brighton player until 2026, per the terms of his contract.

Potter, meanwhile, will have even better options to work with at Chelsea, such as Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, N’Golo Kante and Denis Zakaria.

Billy Gilmour decision proves players should consider multiple factors

If Potter was a key factor behind Gilmour choosing Brighton, perhaps it should serve as a warning to other players.

Joining up with a manager can be a convincing factor. But football is a ruthless business and coaches are never assured of their places for long.

Look at Tuchel, for example. It was only last summer that he was winning the Champions League with Chelsea – and now he is out of work.

And Potter had shown his potential with Brighton, so was set to progress with his career. He has now taken that opportunity with the Blues.

Gilmour will have to prove himself under another coach when Brighton appoint a replacement. The Scotland international can only hope it will be someone with a similar philosophy.

If not, then he will have to wonder what other appealing factors there were to Brighton. They are still a well run club. Hence, he has time to make a name for himself there.

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