Gary Cahill cites his Chelsea move as the reason for his rise into the England team

Cahill credits Chelsea move for his England selection

Chelsea defender Gary Cahill believes his move to Chelsea was the making of his career.

The defender also revealed he does not find it difficult to switch between playing for the Blues and England as he has the benefit of a solid defensive partner for both teams.

The 28-year-old centre-back is set to be handed a starting berth for the Three Lions in Brazil as he has been in outstanding form for the west Londoners throughout the campaign.

He has formed a formidable partnership with club legend John Terry in Jose Mourinho’s side with their combination of speed, experience and positional awareness a key factor behind their third place finish the Premier League.

Calls for Terry to be recalled to the England squad may have fallen on deaf ears, but the argument that the national side would benefit from the luxury of being able to field two players that perform regularly together at club level.

However, Cahill has insisted that he does not struggle to adapt to international level due to the calibre of players around him, and is hopeful that his partnership with Phil Jagielka will flourish the more game time they receive.

“It depends who you’re switching to. If you’re lucky enough to be selected, you’re over the moon – so you’re happy to play with whoever.

“The quality of players and defenders in this squad makes it easier to play with anyone. Previously I’ve played with Phil (Jagielka) quite a few times and that’s gone really well, and we haven’t conceded too many. So it’s not too hard.

“They’re similar players in the sense that they’re both winners and both defend first and foremost. They take few chances and they’re both very good players. I play with JT more at club level, but when I play with Phil, we’ve got a good partnership,” he told reporters.

Meanwhile, the former Bolton defender also insisted that he has dramatically improved during his time at Stamford Bridge due to the stature of the club and the fact he is regularly competing against the world’s best players.

“I think it’s given me a platform to be seen a lot more. No disrespect to Bolton, because it was fantastic for me there, but you might play on TV once every couple of months when you’re there – people react as if you’ve just come on the scene when you do something well.

“I was playing similar football there, but Chelsea is on such a high platform in terms of people seeing you a lot more – we were on Sky every week and Champions League is all on TV, obviously.

“So people see a lot more of you. I do think I’ve improved over the past two years, because playing with and against the likes of JT, [Eden] Hazard and all these boys does improve you. I’ve progressed the way I’ve wanted to progress, but I want to keep going and keep pushing,” Cahill insisted.