Chelsea Transfer Rumours: 8 Reasons Not to Sign Gary Cahill

According to ESPN, Owen Coyle has stated that Chelsea is still poised to sign Gary Cahill even though an agreement cannot be reached over the England international’s wages. 

Signing Cahill would be an indictment on David Luiz's inability to string consistent performances. 

But why is André Villas-Boas replacing inconsistency with ineptitude? 

This article will outline eight reasons why signing Cahill is a big mistake. 

Gary Cahill Leading Bolton Wanderers to Relegation

Someone tell André Villas-Boas that it's illogical to fix a flawed defence with Gary Cahill, who has led his team to the joint worst defence in the league.

The decision to sign Cahill has as much logic as subbing on Paulo Ferreira with nine minutes to play against Fulham—Chelsea needed to score.   

Club	GC	LP
Bolton Wanderers	43	18
Tottenham Hotspur	20	3
Manchester United	20	2
Liverpool	18	6
Manchester City	16	1

• Source: http://www.whoscored.com/
• GC = goals conceded. 
• LP = ladder position. 

Gary Cahill's Proficiency at Playing the Offside Trap

André Villas-Boas sees Gary Cahill as the saviour of his disastrous high-line strategy. 

Cahill wins 1.9 offsides per game and is in a league of his own when it comes to winning offsides. 

Signing Cahill would mean Villas-Boas continuing his much criticised and flawed high-line strategy. 

Villas-Boas is playing Russian roulette in hoping linesmen raise their flag every time John Terry and Cahill signal for an offside.  

Chelsea are doomed if they continue the high line with Terry, who has no recovery pace, and Cahill, whose tackling is as productive as Juan Mata's. 

Player	TOSW	OSWPG
Gary Cahill	37	1.9
Vincent Kompany	9	0.5
Daniel Agger	8	0.5
Younès Kaboul	7	0.4
Phil Jones	1	0.1

• Source: http://www.whoscored.com/
• TOSW = total offsides won.
• OSWPG = offsides won per game. 

Gary Cahill Is a Weak Tackler

You could argue that it's unfair to compare Gary Cahill's defensive statistics to defenders playing on better teams. 

So, to be fair to Cahill, let's see if his tackling statistics are enhanced by comparing him to midfielders and forwards. 

It's a concern when Juan Mata has made the same amount of tackles as Cahill. 

Player	TT	TPG
Nani	27	1.4
David Silva	23	1.2
Luis Suárez	21	1.2
Juan Mata	14	0.8
Gary Cahill	14	0.7

• Source: http://www.whoscored.com/
• TT = total tackles. 
• TPG = tackles per game. 

Gary Cahill's Poor Passing Ability

One worrying characteristic that I've noticed with Gary Cahill is he gives the ball away. 

Perhaps Cahill has been watching too much archival footage of Franz Beckenbauer. 

Cahill's passing ability is limited, so instead of attempting Hail Mary passes, why not just complete a simple sideways pass? 

In 19 Premier League games, he's given away possession 150 times. 

Player	PC	PP
John Terry	1,068	91.6
Jonny Evans	426	90.6
Per Mertesacker	737	89.3
Vincent Kompany	894	88.5
Gary Cahill	437	74.4

• Source: http://www.whoscored.com/
• PC = passes completed.
• PP = passing percentage. 

The Principle of Not Bowing Down to Gary Cahill

I'm sick and tired of watching players and agents short-change Chelsea. 

The sum of £7 million is nothing to Roman Abramovich, but considering Chelsea paid £50 million for a deteriorating Fernando Torres and £18 million for Yuri Zhirkov to warm the benches—no way should Chelsea sign Gary Cahill. 

Especially after Cahill reportedly demanded  £100,000 a week. 

Who does he think think he is? Mats Hummels? 

Chelsea must not reward Cahill for leading his team to the joint worst Premier League defence. 

He shouldn't even earn £50,000 a week. 

Signing Him for Free

Why sign Gary Cahill for £7 million when you can sign him for free in six months? 

Gary Cahill Is Overrated

Gary Cahill will be to Chelsea to what Jean-Alain Boumsong was for Newcastle United. Boumsong was rightly lambasted for being useless during his time at Newcastle. 

Yet, it's egregious that people can link Gary Cahill to Chelsea with a straight face. It just goes to show how overrated English internationals are. 

Pros and Cons of Signing Gary Cahill

Pros

• Adept at playing the offside trap. 

• Strong aerially—averages 3.3 aerial duels won per game (third highest among centre-backs). 

Cons

• Worse than David Luiz.

• Weak tackler. 

• Poor passer. 

• Constantly caught out of position.

• Questionable leader. 

• In bad form. 

• Can sign him for free in six months' time. 

• Taking advantage of Chelsea's weak stance against high wages. 

• Will continue André Villas-Boas' doomed high line strategy. 

Here are 5 things you need to know about Chelsea's narrow 2-1 win over Wolves. 

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