Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool: Gilmour earns the plaudits, but Barkley earns the win
Tuesday night's FA Cup performance from Billy Gilmour as Chelsea defeated Liverpool earned the 18-year-old immense praise from the TV studio pundits.
Alan Shearer in particular was ebullient in his appreciation of the youngster's tenacity and drive in a super-charged Blues display which caught Liverpool on an off evening.
But while Gilmour's performance belied his young age and, frankly, his slight stature, team-mate Ross Barkley's FC Star Man display (8.0) has gone somewhat under the radar.
Barkley's discipline problems this season have been well-known and Frank Lampard has encouraged him to show more professionalism after being spotted out in various London venues.
And against Liverpool he produced his best performance of the season. His defensive statistics were incredibly disciplined:
- 3/5 (60%) of tackles won
- 9/14 (64%) of duels won
- 3 clearances
- 3 interceptions
- 8 recoveries
While none of these statistics were the best of the match, he had a consistent involvement across all of them and his constant screening alongside Gilmour made life extremely difficult for Liverpool to drive any kind of forward momentum.
And of course his clinching goal was special, showcasing the Barkley of old. He carried the ball fully fifty yards before pinging a lovely right-footed effort across Adrian and in to the far corner.
In a night where a few Chelsea players justified their existence - Kepa was excellent in the first half, particularly when making a close-range triple save - Barkley's largely been forgotten because of the emergence of Gilmour. But the England midfielder showed he still has something to give to this team.