Gary Cahill transfer to Chelsea finalised

Gary Cahill insisted he was never going to turn down the chance to join Chelsea after finally completing his £7million move from Bolton.

Cahill put the finishing touches to a reported five-and-a-half-year contract yesterday, having spent more than a fortnight wrangling over personal terms that threatened to scupper the deal.

But the England defender, 26, suggested he had no intention of walking away from the protracted negotiations between his representatives and Chelsea chief executive Ron Gourlay.

“Chelsea is a massive club, it is a club that looks to win trophies season in, season out and it is a big opportunity for me to be a part of that,” he told the Blues’ official website, www.chelseafc.com. “Opportunities like this, you can’t turn down.”

Cahill reportedly settled on wages of £80,000-per-week after meeting Gourlay on Friday, £20,000 less than the player was said to have demanded during initial talks.

He then travelled to London to undergo a medical and watched his new club’s 1-0 Barclays Premier League win over Sunderland on Saturday.

Cahill told Bolton’s official website, www.bwfc.co.uk: “This is the right move for me at the right time and I would like to thank everyone at Bolton because I’ve had a great four years at the football club.

“My spell with Wanderers has enabled me to break into the England squad, and I would particularly like to thank the fans for their support along the way.”