Chelsea to turn to Bolton defender Gary Cahill in January
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Arsene Wenger in £10m raid for Bolton's England star Gary Cahill
Gunners target: Bolton's Gary Cahill (left) in action against Blackpool yesterday
Arsene Wenger is ready to make a £10million bid for Bolton centre-half Gary Cahill in January as he tries to shore up Arsenal's leaky defence and prevent their title challenge from fading away in the new year.
The Gunners went top of the Premier League for two hours yesterday after winning 4-2 at Aston Villa, only to be knocked off by Manchester United's 7-1 demolition of Blackburn.
Wenger, though, is desperately short of experienced central defenders and the long-term injury to Belgian Thomas Vermaelen has exacerbated their problems.
Cahill, 24, is now their No 1 target after his superb form this season has helped Bolton into the top five, a place cemented by their 2-2 draw at home to Blackpool.
Arsenal are likely to to start the bidding at £10m though Bolton, whose debts have risen to £93m, will initially demand as much as £18m for a centre-half who made his England debut in September against Bulgaria.
Wenger tried to sign Everton's Phil Jagielka last summer and is believed to have bid £10m but the player has since signed a new contract at Goodison.
Cahill, however, has thrived under manager Owen Coyle, whose insistence on passing football has demonstrated the player's ability to bring the ball out of defence as well as defend in a robust manner.
All those attributes have commended him to Wenger as the best option to make an immediate improvement to his team.
Arsenal have been unable to fill the gap created by Vermaelen's Achilles injury, with Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci, who both arrived in the summer, struggling to settle in.
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Gary Cahill lined up by Chelsea as champions consider January move for Bolton defender
Catching the eye: Cahill (left) is being monitored by Premier League big guns
Chelsea are ready to turn to Bolton defender Gary Cahill in January to tighten up their leaky defence.
The Blues have taken just one point from their last three Premier League games while £15million-rated Cahill has been in fine form as Bolton have climbed to sixth in the table.
Stamford Bridge skipper John Terry has been sidelined with a niggling nerve problem in his leg while fellow central defender Alex is facing up to eight weeks out after knee surgery.
Carlo Ancelotti's side have surrendered top spot in the table during their slump and the Londonders have sounded out Bolton about England international Cahill.
The 24-year-old was handed his international debut as a substitute against Bulgaria in September and has also been heavily linked with Arsenal and Liverpool.
Bolton are reported to have lined up Aston Villa's Curtis Davies, on loan at Leicester, as a possible replacement if they lose Cahill.