• Premier League

Villas-Boas backs Cahill after difficult start

Chelsea were poor defensively against Napoli on Tuesday © Getty Images

Enlarge

Related Links

• News: Torres axed from Spain squad
  
• News: Villas-Boas an admirer of Benitez
  

Andre Villas-Boas has insisted he is happy with Gary Cahill's performance at Chelsea, despite a Champions League debut the player himself conceded contained "bread and butter" mistakes.

Cahill has had to adjust quickly to life at Stamford Bridge, with John Terry's injury problems forcing him to strike up an understanding with central defensive partner David Luiz in some significant games for the club.

The results to date have not always been encouraging, but Villas-Boas believes both players have done well under the circumstances and are making rapid progress as a pair.

He is hopeful Cahill will put a strong performance in when he faces his former team Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.

"At the moment we have a new partnership that we are trying to fine tune to be more stable at the back, like we were in January," Villas-Boas said. "Both of them are very extrovert, Gary speaks a lot, organises a lot. It is not about communication.

"It just takes time, it's a new partnership and you have to get used to the person next to you. I am happy with Gary. He has been excellent in the games he has played."

Villas-Boas has made numerous changes to his back four in recent games due to a combination of injuries and tactical considerations - with Ashley Cole most recently sitting out the start of the disappointing defeat in Naples. Cahill admits that the instability has not been helpful.

"There have been changes made so it's not something that will click right in to place straight away," Cahill told Chelsea TV. "It's different. The full-backs have changed so I'm not going to lie and say it's fantastically easy.

"We have had some sticky results of late and I have been plonked straight in the middle of it all so it's been difficult, but the more work we do on the training ground the better it will be."

Chelsea were in the midst of a decent run last time they faced Bolton, winning 5-1 at the Reebok Stadium in October. Villas-Boas admits their fortunes are now in sharp contrast to that, but is hopeful they can rediscover the winning formula.

"That was maybe our strongest period of the season. The first three or four months were the best. Now we are colliding with maybe our worst period of the season," Villas-Boas added. "In October Bolton's motivation was a little bit down due to the results they were having but they have turned it around a bit.

"I think it will be a difficult game now but we have this willingness to turn things around and hopefully we will win against Bolton."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.