No rush to throw Cahill in (From Leigh Journal)

No rush to throw Cahill in

12:40pm Friday 19th March 2010 in

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OWEN Coyle has conceded that tomorrow’s trip to Everton could come too soon for fit-again Gary Cahill.

The Wanderers boss reckons his star defender has progressed since returning to training, just a month after a blood clot scare looked to have ended his season prematurely.

But Coyle is reluctant to thrust Cahill straight back into the action at Goodison Park, and is likely to choose between Sam Ricketts — back from suspension — and Andy O’Brien to partner Zat Knight at centre half.

“Gary is getting stronger and stronger with every day and that’s a tremendous boost for everyone at the football club,” he said.

“You want your best players available, and he’s certainly one of them.

“But it’s fair to say that he might be struggling to start the Everton game.”

Coyle has not completely ruled out Cahill playing some part against the Blues, who have won their last three home games on the spin against Wanderers.

He is reluctant, however, to risk the 24-year-old picking up any minor injuries after a month out of action.

“He’s been through such a difficult time, both physically and mentally, with what was said and what could have happened,” he said.

“When and if he is ready to play, I have to make sure it is the right time for him. The best way I can put it is that it has to be done for the right reasons, not just because you are being selfish or you think he has got to get back as soon as he can.

“We want Gary Cahill back but we want him to be back for the remainder of the season. We’ll monitor his next couple of sessions and make a decision from there.”

Coyle believes that if Cahill had not missed the last month, he would have been involved in England’s friendly against Egypt earlier this month.

And he reckons the young defender still has time to stake an international place before this summer’s World Cup finals, if he can replicate his form from earlier in the season.

“Gary Cahill , in my opinion, is a quality player who would grace an England jersey in some style,” he said. “He has got every attribute to play at the very top level and the pinnacle of any player’s career would be the World Cup finals.

“But first and foremost he has got to get back playing for Bolton Wanderers and doing what he does best.

“I do believe that with the form he was in, there would have been a great chance he would have been in the Egypt squad. But that has passed him by now, given what happened, and he has got the qualities to bounce back from that.

“It’s up to him now to show Mr Capello and everyone else that he is capable of being an England player.”