'He looked world class': Roy Keane lavishes praise on former Rangers kid and Scotland starlet Billy Gilmour

Former Celtic midfielder waxes lyrical about Chelsea youngster after Liverpool performance

Manchester United legend Roy Keane has hailed the performance of Scottish youngster Billy Gilmour against Liverpool as one of the best he’s seen in a “long, long time”.

The 18-year-old has been widely praised for his showing in Chelsea’s 2-0 victory over the reigning Champions League holders in the FA Cup in midweek.

It was only Gilmour’s second start for the Stamford Bridge side, who he joined from Rangers as a 16-year-old.

Chelsea's Scottish midfielder Billy Gilmour in action against Liverpool. Picture: Getty

Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s meeting with Everton, where Gilmour made his first league start, Keane added his own plaudits after admitting the youngster caught his eye as he watched the win over Liverpool at home.

The former Celtic midfielder said: "As the game started I got out of my seat and said who is this kid in midfield?

"There's certain traits you want from a midfielder: quality on the ball, football intelligence, composure, he had everything. It was one of the best performances I've seen for a long, long time.

"The downside now for the kid is that he's got to back it up. He's got to keep it up now against different types of tests.

"He looked like a world class player. Everything he did throughout the game just had quality written all over it."