'You don't understand' – Billy Gilmour breaks silence on Brighton exit as Napoli close in on title

Billy Gilmour's switch from Brighton to Napoli last summer caught many by surprise.

The Scotland international had just started to establish himself in the Albion midfield and was expected to play a key role for new head coach Fabian Hurzeler.

However, Antonio Conte – who previously worked with Gilmour at Chelsea – was keen to take him to Napoli and an initial fee of £12m was agreed.

Brighton also negotiated another £4m in potential add-ons plus a percentage of a future sell-on.

Gilmour signed a five-year contract with the Serie A club and teamed-up with his Scotland international team mate Scott McTominay, who also moved to the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium last summer from Manchester United.

The former Brighton man has not always been a regular this season under Conte but he has made 23 appearances in Serie A with 11 starts.

With three league games to go Napoli top the table and are closing in on the Serie A title.

“The ultimate goal for players is to win as many trophies as possible, and I think that playing in Naples, I have a possibility to do that," said Gilmour via NapoliCalcio24

“My expectation coming here was to try something new. The Premier League is excellent, but the opportunity came up, so I decided to come here and experience something new.

"I think until you actually play it, you don’t understand how hard the league is and how tactical you need to be.

“My favourite thing in Naples definitely has to be the weather. From the UK, you don’t see the sun much, but the weather is really nice here."

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