Chelsea starlet Billy Gilmour talks about his memories about the Liverpool clash in which he shined in midfield.

It was an FA Cup game against Liverpool in March that really thrust Gilmour into the spotlight. On just his third start of the season and against one of England’s best teams, he marshalled the midfield with experience beyond his years as Chelsea won 2-0.

A few days later, the 18-year-old was handed his full Premier League debut in a Super Sunday encounter with Everton – rejuvenated under Carlo Ancelotti – but Gilmour produced a man-of-the-match performance to sweep another Merseyside visitor aside.

“Leading up to the games, I was always thinking about what I’m going to do,” he said. “When the gaffer spoke to me, he said; ‘Go out and play your own game’, that gives you a lot of confidence to go out and do what you love.

“Playing in the game [against Liverpool], there were parts that I felt were difficult, but when I got on the ball I felt good. I had players running off, so it was making it easy for me.

“It was a great, great game so I was happy to play well. And then receiving the man of the match, it was amazing. I never thought of it, I just wanted to play the game well, not muck up anything, and play the game right.

“To get first-team experience against Liverpool, the best team in the world right now, felt good.”

So could a call up to the senior Scotland squad be next?

“Everyone knows my feelings about representing my country,” Gilmour said. “Hopefully I’m not far off it. I just need to keep working hard and see where it takes me.

“After the Liverpool game, I swapped shirts with Andy Robertson. He came up to me after the game and said ‘well done, you played really well, keep doing it and hopefully see you soon in the first-team squad’.

“That was great to hear that from the captain of the country. I then asked him if we could swap shirts and he said ‘no problem, let’s do it inside’ so that was me buzzing.”