Billy Gilmour grateful for support of Scotland players and fans after injury

Billy Gilmour admits the support of his Scotland team-mates and fans has been the ideal consolation to missing out on the World Cup.

The Napoli midfielder is in the United States as a supporter himself after being ruled out of the squad because of a knee injury suffered during the warm-up win over Curacao.

The former Chelsea player said in an interview on the Scotland National Team YouTube channel: “This is the next best thing to do so I want to be here.

“I’ve got a new manager coming in at club level so there’s all little things that you can look forward to as well, but the most important thing was to try and be over here with the squad.

“They’ve all been first class, and the manager and the staff. The players are always texting me making sure I’m okay and just checking in and you know what it’s like, sometimes you don’t want anyone to talk to you but they’re more than happy to text you and a phone call makes your day really.

“We’ve got great boys in the squad that always look out for the young ones and especially with an injury.

“I had Lewis Ferguson, Kenny (McLean), they’ve had similar situations with Euros, so it’s nice to hear their story also and how you come back from that.”

The 25-year-old added: “My dream is still to go to a World Cup and play but for me to be around the fans and with the family and see the other stuff outside of the football, it’s been amazing. I’ve really, really enjoyed it.

“Boston’s been a great city, the people are so friendly and you see all the fans having a great time, so it’s definitely put a smile on my face.

“I’ve had a lot of good well wishes from the fans, whether it be in the hotel or just in the shops walking around. It’s been amazing to be fair. The fans have been really respectful and they’re all in good spirits, as we should be.

“I can’t say thank you enough times to how many of the Scotland fans have wished me well.”

Published: 22/06/2026 by Radio NewsHub