September was a month full of nightmares for England and Chelsea defender Gary Cahill. It seemed like his composure had evaded him and the defender kept making mistake after mistake at the back.
Chelsea were in a spot of bother for a couple weeks in terms of the league table and their defensive woes. The lost their captain John Terry to injury and ended up with Cahill and Luiz at the heart of their defence.
Most fans were worried about the Brazilian’s liability at the back but his partner turned out to be even more susceptible to mistakes. Cahill made four errors in four consecutive games for the Blues.
The first one was against Swansea and a mistake which was highly debatable because it could have been a foul as well. Then in the game against Liverpool, he did not clear the ball convincingly enough and gave Henderson the chance to shoot at goal.
Against Leicester in the League cup, his error led to Okazaki’s goal but Conte’s team managed to fight back and win the game in 120 minutes. But against Arsenal, it proved very costly and his lax defending led to Sanchez opening the scoring after which they were on the receiving end of a 3-0 hammering.
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Chelsea put a stop to the rot against Hull City with a 2-0 win but even in that game they did look shaky at the back. Fans have come to question why Cahill is still in the side. There is no doubt his confidence will be shaky right now so it would have been a good idea to remove him out of the firing line.
But the Italian has a different perspective on the current situation. Here’s what he said:
“There was a single mistake, but we had 80 minutes to recover the situation. And, in 80 minutes, we didn't recover it. A single mistake can happen during a game.When we lose, we lose together - not just because of one mistake,"
There was a single mistake, but we had 80 minutes to recover the situation. And, in 80 minutes, we didn't recover it. A single mistake can happen during a game.I don't like to single out players for individual mistakes. If someone makes a mistake, together we must help him and solve the situation.
“Against Arsenal, we had 80 minutes to solve the situation and repair the mistake. Cahill is a good player, a great defender and a great player. I trust him.”
Conte has put a lot of faith in Cahill and with Terry set to return to the fold things are looking up for the Blues.
