Gary Cahill’s Chelsea return will be rife with what ifs

Gary Cahill will always fill a strange place in the memory of Chelsea fans. His return to Stamford Bridge with the away team will be full of what ifs.

Gary Cahill will not go down as a Chelsea legend, a word already too freely passed out to players. Unfortunately, he probably will not go down as a fan favorite or a cult hero either. He lacked the flash to be that. In truth, Cahill’s time at Chelsea will be a strange mix of narratives, true and untrue, that will blur the lines of what exactly he was to the Blues.

He is now at a surprisingly good Crystal Palace team sitting in ninth, but only two points off of fifth (thanks Arsenal!). He has started all but three of their games this season and though Palace have been sneakily good all of 2019, it is also hard to separate their current form from the leadership and experience Cahill has added. The fans adore him as he goes out on a weekly basis.

It is hard to separate how he is doing at Palace from how he ended up there though. And because of that, it is hard not to think of what if scenarios where Cahill had stayed at Chelsea.

He left when his contract ran out because he did not see a place for himself at Chelsea anymore. That is understandable for any captain of a club who came off a season where he played just 562 minutes. Cahill himself pointed towards his dismissal by then manager Maurizio Sarri as to why he had to leave. It was not just about him seemingly not fitting the requirements of the Italian; it was about him being written off right away in one of the first snap judgments of a season full of snap judgments. Once the decision had been made, there was never a consideration that it could have been wrong.

And that simply does not mesh with Cahill’s own history. He initially had to fight David Luiz for minutes at Chelsea. He won out. Then he was dropped for the very excellent preinjury Kurt Zouma. He eventually fought his way back in over him too. He proved his ability on the ball was much better than perceived when he found a home on the left side of Antonio Conte’s 3-4-3. And even the next season, he fought off Antonio Rudiger for minutes for a large part of the season.

Cahill always was and still is a fighter. He was never a player that would settle for being a starter or being on the bench; he would fight to improve his current position. Sound familiar? It should because that is basically the current environment that Frank Lampard has the Blue operating under.

But it is understandable why Cahill would have wanted to move on after last season. Still, had he decided to stay, it is impossible to say that Lampard would not have loved him. Cahill always led by example on and off the pitch and it would not have even been surprising if he had once again fought his way into the starting XI under Lampard.

Cahill was never the best player. He was never flashy or loud. But he worked hard for his place in the game. His Chelsea career speaks for itself, despite how it ended. He is getting the admiration at Crystal Palace that he has long deserved. His return to Chelsea will be a strange one. Chelsea need to have no mercy as they pursue the win, but the what ifs will remain after the final whistle.