Chelsea need to tighten up, says Cahill

Chelsea need to tighten up, insists Cahill

Nov 10, 2012 11:45:00 AM

The 26-year-old feels the Blues' attacking threat makes them serious contenders domestically and in Europe, but only if they can quickly improve their defensive record

Gary Cahill believes Chelsea must shore up their defence to become serious contenders both domestically and in Europe.

The former Aston Villa and Bolton centre-back insists the Blues have the attacking talent to match any team in the world but admits they are being let down by a leaky backline.

Often paired alongside David Luiz, Cahill commonly finds himself as the last line of defence and says he sometimes feels more exposed than he perhaps should be.

"There are times when things aren't as tight or you feel a bit more exposed than usual," he told The Guardian.

"The other night, against Shakhtar Donetsk, I was thinking: 'Wow, this is a bit end-to-end.' But, for the neutral, it was great to watch. And with the players we have, would people be happy if we were just winning 1-0 every week? At least this is entertaining."

Chelsea seem to have gone into matches this season with the aim of simply outscoring their opponents. While this may have been a fruitful plan so far in the league, Cahill suspects it is not a game plan on which to base a title challenge.

"The first thing the attacking players in the team think about is hurting the opposition and getting forward," he added.

"Our style is more attractive than people thought last year but it's all about winning games and being disciplined at times. We could have done better in terms of discipline over the last two or three weeks and some of the goals we conceded could have been prevented.

"As a defence, we have to strive for that clean sheet while also giving the attacking players the licence to go and create.

"We've got some defensive midfielders who sit in there, which really helps, but sometimes, when you are so attack-minded, you are going to get hurt.

"We have to learn to get back behind the ball when we lose it, and do that without taking anything away from our offensive players. Juan, Eden, Oscar ... the list goes on and they'll make things happen.

That's working well. It's about balance: you don't want to be too rigid but we just need to tighten up a little bit. It'll take a while to gel. The team's young. I was one of the oldest players out there the other day, which was hard to believe."

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Champions League final - LIVE!

German giants Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will battle it out at Wembley for European glory. Get involved by sending us your thoughts via Twitter or Facebook! Hosted by Mark Doyle.

10:51 PM BST

Heynckes, class act that he is, was also quick to empathise with a devastated Dortmund.

"I told their players: I know your disappointment after losing a final. I lost a final to Liverpool, too.

"During the first half we had trouble to get into the game. At half-time a adjusted our play. I think both teams felt pressure. If you see that you have a 25-point-lead in the league, it is normal you are the favourite. But after 30 minutes we freed ourselves.

"Over the past year, we improved and improved. We improved and modified so many details. I was stricter and I have to say that the players followed me and there is harmony in the dressing room."

10:48 PM BST

And finally we get to hear from Bayern Munich boss Jupp Heynckes, who will be replaced by Pep Guardiola this summer.

The big news is, though, that he seems to have a job lined up for himself, which restores one's faith in our fickle game, given the man is now a two-time Champions League winner!

"The decision on what I will do after the DFB Pokal match (against Stuttgart next saturday) was already taken last June? Retire? No, you will learn that after the DFB Pokal final."

10:43 PM BST

Here's a snap feature from the brilliant Kris Voakes, who praises Arjen Robben for finally conquering his demons to secure European glory for Bayern Munich.

10:41 PM BST

Philipp Lahm is also relieved that Bayern have finally banished the memory of their heart-breaking - and thoroughly undeserved - loss to Chelsea last season.

"We worked unbelievably hard in last year's final and finally we have been rewarded," the Roten skipper enthused.

"We had to got through so much. But everybody worked so hard in the last months and weeks and now we have finally won it."

10:39 PM BST

Even better stuff from Manuel Neuer, who arguably kept his side in the game during the opening 25 minutes, who admitted to Sky Sport Germany:

"I have to admit: after it went 1-1, I was scared as s**t! You remember how it went last year. The feeling when we scored was undescribable."

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