Gary Cahill move a good one for everybody involved

Premier League Chelsea finally completed the signing of Bolton centre-back Gary Cahill for a fee believed to be in the region of £7million on Monday.

The deal has been a protracted one but I think that Gary Cahill joining the Blues will benefit everybody.

Excited

The England international told Chelsea’s official website: “ Chelsea is a massive club, it is a club that looks to win trophies season in season out and it is a big opportunity for me to be a part of that. Opportunities like this you can’t turn down.”

Value

At 26 years of age Gary Cahill could prove to be a very good signing for Chelsea. The reported fee of £7million is not a lot when you compare it to other deals that have taken place recently. Especially when you compare it to the £25million the Blues played for mercurial centre-back David Luiz.

I think Gary Cahill is a bargain and I’m just surprised that more of the big teams didn’t make a bids for him. He had been linked with the likes of Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool in the past but they all decided against making a move for defender.

Desperate

Bolton boss Owen Coyle has been desperate to sell the centre-back since the summer. It’s not because he doesn’t rate Cahill it’s because he is need of extra quality, not to mention bodies in his squad. Wanderers are currently second from bottom in the Premier League and have suffered something of a nightmare season.

Coyle knows that by selling Cahill it will give him some room to operate in the transfer market. The Trotters have had some horrendous luck with injuries this season, losing key players Stuart Holden and Chung-Yong Lee with long-term injuries.

The money may not be much but it should allow Bolton to strengthen their squad slightly. According to Sky Sports reports the Trotters are close to signing American centre-back Tim Ream as a replacement for Cahill.

The New York Redbulls star is highly-rated and has been linked with Arsenal and West Brom in the past. A fee has yet to be revealed for the 24 year-old but it’s unlikely to be a hefty one. If as expected Wanderers do complete the signing of Ream then Coyle is then likely to turn his attention to other targets ahead of the transfer window shutting next month.

Standard

Gary Cahill has performed consistently well in the top flight for Wanderers for the past couple of seasons. This season he has played in the worse defence in the Premier League. You can’t really lay the blame at his door because he is only one player and can only do so much.

He is accustomed to playing with a low level team and now he will have to raise his level of performance if he is going to be successful at Chelsea. Cahill has already proved he can make the step-up to international football with relative ease.

He now has to prove that he is good enough for a team challenging at the top end of the Premier League and in the Champions League. The time was right for a move and in the next few years I’m sure he will improve as a player.

Needed

Chelsea were in dire need of an extra centre-back. Brazilian centre-back Alex has handed a transfer request in and he looks set for a move to QPR, after the Blues agreed a fee with their London neighbours.

Alex’s compatriot David Luiz has looked less than convincing at centre-back in recent months. His talents seem to be going forward more than defending. John Terry’s form this season hasn’t exactly been great, as he seems to have been distracted by the on-going racism case against him.

Gary Cahill will provide Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas with a much needed extra body in defence. Cahill will get the chance to forge a long-term partnership with England captain John Terry as well.

The pair has played together at international level for their country and it can only be good for England that they are playing together week-in week-out. The duo could be England’s first-choice centre-back pairing at this summers European Championships.

Ideal

There doesn’t seem to be any losers in this deal. Chelsea got the extra centre-back they were in need of and Bolton got the money they needed to strengthen their squad. I also think Gary Cahill was in need of a fresh challenge and he will get that at Stamford Bridge.

All-in-all this transfer seems to have made everybody happy. At £7million Gary Cahill is sure to be a very good signing for Chelsea and hopefully he will go on to become an even better player for both club and country.

Will Gary Cahill be a good signing for Chelsea?