Sam Allardyce has stated that he’s happy with how much Conor Gallagher has transformed into a great footballer.
Gallagher and Allardyce worked together at West Brom during the 2020-21 season, when the 24-year-old was on loan from Chelsea.
Allardyce thinks he had an influence on the England international, who has now become an important player for Chelsea.
Speaking exclusively to Birmingham Live, Allardyce said: “The best thing that happened to Conor was that year at West Brom [loan spell before going to Palace on loan], thinking ‘I don’t want to go through this again’. That experience…he has gone on a lot quicker than I thought he would. He’s jumped ahead of the queue of where I thought he was.
“That year was a disaster, in terms of there’s nothing worse than losing more games than you win, and waking up on a Sunday morning and you’ve lost again, as a player, coach or manager.
“As a youngster, it can give you a big ‘I must do better – I’m not going to fail, I’m going to succeed’. He went to Palace after that, had another year learning, and then ended up getting the odd England call-up. Now, it looks like, even with Chelsea spending about a billion pounds, that he’s still very much at the front-line. Full marks to him.”
Conor Gallagher has proven his doubters wrong, as he has turned into a great footballer at Chelsea.