Source: Daily_Mail
Cahill: O'Neill made a mistake... but I have no regrets about leaving Villa
Growing in stature: Cahill[LNB] What price a central defender from the fringes of the England team?Start the bidding near the £20million mark and turn away now if yourname is Martin O'Neill.[LNB] 'We all make mistakes,' said Gary Cahill on the subject ofO'Neill's readiness to let him leave Aston Villa for Bolton for just£5m in January 2008.[LNB] Cahill has not looked back since, breaking into Fabio Capello'ssquad and now commanding envious glances from Manchester United andArsenal.[LNB] With Joleon Lescott's £24m move to Manchester City inflating thecost of English centre halves, Gary Megson has warned wouldbe buyersthat his 23-year-old defender from South Yorkshire will cost more thanthe £16m Bolton banked for Nicolas Anelka.[LNB] 'It's nice to read positive things about yourself,' said Cahill.'It gives you a boost and shows how far you've come and that all thehard work has paid off. [LNB]'I try not to dwell on it too much. Nothing's going to happen atthis stage of the season and it's just a matter of getting my head downand putting in the performances that have got me here.[LNB] 'Things have been progressing well, I'm enjoying my time at Boltonand who knows what's going to happen? If a big club comes in, I don'tthink there will be a problem with that.'[LNB] Physical presence: Gary Cahill[LNB] Cahill appears to come in at No 5 on Capello's list of centraldefenders. He has yet to be named in an England squad but has beencalled in on three occasions to replace injured players. When Lescottpulled out of the World Cup qualifiers against Ukraine tomorrow andBelarus on Wednesday, it was no surprise to learn that the Italiancoach made a call to Bolton.[LNB] Cahill has overtaken Tottenham's injury-hit trio of Ledley King, Jonathan Woodgate and Michael Dawson in the reckoning.[LNB] [LNB]It will not be lost on Villa fans how O'Neill has spent lavishly on central defenders during Cahill's rise to prominence. Zat Knight, Carlos Cuellar, Curtis Davies, Richard Dunne and James Collins have all been recruited in the last two years at a cost close to £30m.[LNB] 'Martin O'Neill is a great manager and he's moved on,' said Cahill. 'He never forced me out of the door. If I had a crystal ball I may have got a chance there, but I didn't. I spoke to him a few times and he couldn't guarantee me a place. I left Villa because I was hungry to play. He couldn't promise me that. I chose to move and have not looked back since.[LNB] [LNB] 'I've improved a lot from my days at Villa. When Gary Megson paid £5m it was a gamble but I hope it's paid off. It could have backfired but it's turned out to be a good decision for me and for my career.'[LNB] Swapping Villa's Champions League ambitions for Bolton's regular relegation perils has not deterred Capello, who has been impressed by Cahill's physical presence and ability on the ball.[LNB] 'I'd like to think I'm not just a "head it and clear it" defender,' said Cahill. 'I can get the ball down and play as well. It's important when you're stepping up to the international level that you have got a little bit more about your game.' [LNB] It's all uphill from here, Steve: Staunton relishing Darlington challengeWho owns your club? Who holds purse strings and how much have they got?[LNB] [LNB]
