BILLY GILMOUR has had to bide his time at Napoli.
But it looks like the Scotland star is finally about to make his mark in Italy.
Billy Gilmour in action for Scotland[/caption]
He’s earned a new nickname alongside Philip Billing[/caption]
Gilmour, 23, joined Napoli in a deal worth an initial £12million in the summer from Brighton.
He joined around the same time fellow Hampden hero Scott McTominay made the move to Naples.
McTominay quickly established himself as a fans’ favourite and has been a key man under Antonio Conte.
Gilmour, however, has had a much slower start to things at the club.
He struggled for starting opportunities and has largely been used off the bench.
Prior to Napoli’s huge title showdown with Inter Milan on Saturday, Gilmour hadn’t started a game since December 5.
So it was somewhat a surprise when Conte – who’s a huge fan of Gilmour – named the midfielder in his starting XI at the weekend.
Napoli and Inter are locked in a major title battle this season and there was little to separate the teams as the huge clash finished in a 1-1 draw.
Philip Billing’s 87th minute equaliser rescued what could be a crucial point for Napoli.
With 11 games left to go, Inter lead Serie A by a point with Napoli in second.
Atalanta, just a further two points behind, are also very much in the mix.
While Napoli didn’t get the win over Inter, they certainly impressed.
Gilmour in particular has been lauded for a superb performance.
Napoli fans flooded social media to heap praise on his showing in the aftermath of the game and it looks like he’s finally getting a real chance to show what he’s capable of.
The Italian media were also suitably impressed with Gilmour, who has now earned a somewhat bizarre new nickname alongside a teammate!
Iconic newspaper La Repubblica hailed Napoli’s midfield trio of Gilmour, Stanislav Lobotka and McTominay – as well as sub Billing.
They felt that Gilmour and Lobotka worked particularly well in tandem and believe the former Rangers kid’s playmaking ability brought the best out of the Slovakia star.
And they reckon both Gilmour – and Bournemouth loanee Billing – could prove the key as Napoli look to go on to seal title glory.
The publication have coined a somewhat bizarre new nickname for Gilmour and Billing together – ‘Billy Squared.’
While it might not be immediately obvious, the reason for ‘squared’ is taking ‘Billy’ from Billy Gilmour and ‘Billi’ from Philip Billing’s surname – effectively two Billys.
‘La Billy al Quadrato’ – as it’s written in Italian – gives Napoli an ‘extra weapon’ going forward according to the publication, who were especially impressed with Gilmour.
They wrote: “The other positive note – perhaps the best of the score presented against Inter – is Gilmour.
“He hadn’t played as a starter since the first leg against the Nerazzurri. Conte deployed him in the midfield trio together with Lobotka and the double playmaker was very popular.
“The Scotsman helped the Slovakian in the build-up phase, showing speed of thought and great search for verticalisation for Lukaku.
“Gilmour also made his presence felt in the recovery phase, making the most of the opportunity that Conte gave him.
“He and Lobotka represent an intriguing solution to propose again with Fiorentina.
“Billy squared works and allows for alternating two modules: 3-5-2 and 4-3-3. Another extra weapon”.
Napoli take on Fiorentina this coming Sunday afternoon.
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