Cahill's Chance To Shine

Cahill's Chance To Shine

"Only One Cahill, there's only one Gary Cahill!" was the chant resounding in the Allianz Arena after the Englishman famously shrugged off a minor injury sustained on field to continue fighting for our European Championship. Deja vu of John Terry, no?

Signed in a transfer which was considered by many as outright daylight robbery, for a bargain price from the then-struggling Bolton, Cahill had to wait for his chance to come at the Bridge. The sacking of AVB and rotation policy of RdM meant that Cahill eventually got starts, forming a formidable partnership with both John Terry and David Luiz. It was of course, the latter partnership that saw us through to the Champions' League victory.

However, the beginning of this season has seen a settled back four for most of the games, with Luiz and Terry being preferred together in the centre of defence and Cahill has seen his playing time limited to Champions League and League Cup matches. That, might soon be changing though...

Terry accepting his 4-match ban means that our first choice back pairing will now revert to our Champions League winning pair - Luiz and Cahill. Dynamic, fast and young, this duo could go on to be one of the most solid back pairing in the Premier League. But now, this is a chance for Cahill. It's his opportunity to prove that he is indeed worthy of being called John Terry's successor in defence for Chelsea.

Cahill, adds to the defence a certain dynamism and grit. Akin to Terry, he isn't afraid to put his body out on the line if it means his team will benefit from it. Built-wise he's quite a tall and physically strong man and can contest aerial duels easily. Moreover, he can be quite a nuisance in the opposition penalty area too, and hes's already scored three time this season, which is quite extraordinary given his limited starts.

"The most important thing is to improve on that [last season]" , he's been quoted as saying and we couldn't put it better ourselves. A skilful and talented defender, the next 4 matches come against tough opponents and will serve as Cahill's crucible. He's turned in wonderful performances vs Spurs and United for Bolton before and repeating the same in a blue shirt will be no big deal for the Englishman. His real test will arise though, against Shakhtar. Inexperienced on this stage, Shakhtar can be a daunting venue for the most experienced player too, let alone Cahill. With a red-hot home atmosphere and a team that plays decent football, if there ever was a need for Cahill to prove his mettle, that would be it.

I'd love to know what you guys think! :)

Priya

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