Rangers have confirmed the glitz of the Premier League have won over Billy Gilmour, no doubt the riches on offer too.
Gilmour, seen as one of the brightest talents in Scottish football, has been linked with Chelsea repeatedly. Barcelona and Bayern Munich has also been credited with an interest, but it’s the Blues who have agreed a deal with Rangers for the teenager.
Rangers wanted to keep Gilmour, 15, at Ibrox but once he made it clear he wanted to leave for the Premier League side there wasn’t much the Gers could do, bar ensure the best possible deal was secured.
A statement on the Official Website read: ‘Rangers can confirm that agreement has been reached for our under-16 player Billy Gilmour to join Chelsea in the summer. The club’s preference would have been for Billy to stay at Rangers but when he made clear his desire to move to the Premier League it was important that we maximised the commercial value for him. We believe we have done this.’
The ‘significant sum’ Rangers will receive also includes further add-ons potentially coming the clubs way in the future.
‘The agreement will provide Rangers with a significant sum for a young player who has yet to play first-team football, and further significant amounts could be due based on milestones being reached. We are pleased with this outcome and believe this deal represents good value for Rangers,’ the statement continued.
Despite the disappointment of losing Gilmour, the club, who confirmed interest throughout Europe in the midfielder, feel his emergence through the academy is seen as a positive to draw on, he also leaves with the clubs best wishes.
The statement finished: ‘That he was sought after by many Premiership clubs, and indeed a number of the largest clubs in Europe, further demonstrates the quality of player now being produced by the Academy. Everyone at Rangers wishes Billy well for his future.’
According to Sky Sports Rangers will receive an initial £500,000 for Gilmour with Pedro Caixinha’s efforts to convince him to stay at Ibrox proving unsuccessful.
His loss is a disappointment but if he didn’t want to stay with Rangers no one player is bigger than this club, chances are Gilmour will become a star but there’s no assurances this will prove to be the case, his development could be hampered by a lack of first team opportunities in London too?
