LOCAL LAD Billy Gilmour has enjoyed something of a breakthrough season at Chelsea so far and his manager is keen to express his satisfaction.

Frank Lampard handed the former Rangers player his Stamford Bridge debut this season and the 18-year-old has gone on to play nine times, including two man of the match outings against Liverpool and Everton.

Despite making his Blues debut at such a young age, Lampard has admitted that he probably could have called Gilmour into his first team sooner.

Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “When you look at Billy he is slight, he is young, quiet and polite.

“But we had to move him into the first team building a while ago because he trained at such a good level.

“If we have a possession drill in training, a game or even a passing drill, people talk about doing the basics as a young player and Billy does that.

“In the modern game it gets lost a little bit, can you do the basics right? Billy does them day in and day out.

“People probably think I threw him in against Liverpool but he probably deserved to play a bit earlier by how he was training.

“It was probably me being a bit conservative with him.

“But the minute he got in he replicated the passing drills and what he did in training against Liverpool - the best team in the country.

“It was a real pleasure to see someone coming in and doing the midfield basics.

“I don’t want to make it sound like he isn’t a talented player because he is, but sometimes the simple things are harder to do.

“He has set a benchmark and after this break he has to go on and have the career he has shown he could have.

“I think he will because his attitude, his family and surroundings are good as well as having the talent.”

Lampard believes Gilmour is showing all the signs of becoming a Premier League great. And after watching him strut his stuff in training Lamps has noticed similarities to Manchester United legend Paul Scholes.

He added: “Paul Scholes was one of the best midfielders I played against in the Premier League. It was interesting playing against him in the early parts of his career.

“He would play it around the corner and then arrive in the box and have the ability to score goals and make assists.

“The cut throat area of the pitch is at the top end and in midfield it can be easier as you have more time, but if you are a player who isn’t top quality more time can be a problem for you.

“Scholesy would pick the right pass and had incredible range and if you got too close he would play it around you.

“Billy is showing early signs of that ability. I don’t want to compare him to Scholesy but in terms of the basics then he has them.

“That is a great platform to build what hopefully, will be a great career."