Gary Cahill has been a mainstay in England's defence since his debut in March 2011, and has had many different defensive partners. More recently, it has been Phil Jagielka, who this season has looked out of sorts and inconsistent in Everton's defence.

Cahill has had a similar year for Chelsea. With the Blues  underperforming, it has illustrated that Cahill is no longer untouchable.

For Chelsea, Cahill has been replaced fairly regularly by the young Frenchman Kurt Zouma, who fits in well alongside Terry. The problem for Cahill this season has been that as soon as he has come under pressure from a player with pace, he and Terry struggled to mop up the problem. With Terry being club captain, Cahill has been the one to miss out.

For once, England have a good wealth of talent at centre back, with the front runners most probably being Chris Smalling of Manchester United and Everton's John Stones. Both are a lot more youthful and able to cope with quick players, unlike Cahill.

Smalling is having a solid season at United, even if the Red Devils are performing inconsistently. Smalling has pushed himself to the top of the team sheet, and has been an attacking threat, as well as a solid defender. He will almost certainly be in Roy's first team in France.

John Stones, although has not had a consistent season, is a young talent that Roy Hodgson rates highly. With the solidity of Smalling, Roy will be hoping that Stones can learn and grow from him. He will also be hoping that with Cahill in the squad, Stones can learn from him to add to the limited experience he has.

Cahill will almost certainly be part of the squad that goes to France, due to his experience at the highest level. Even though Jones and Dier will be called up, Cahill will probably get the nod ahead of them due to his tournament experience.

Gary Cahill can hardly be blamed for his performances this season as he's struggled with injury, as well as Chelsea's reluctance to fully drop Terry even though his lack of pace has proven a problem this season. If Cahill moved to a club that didn't play at such a high a level with so much pressure, then he might be able to make the England first team.

But he's got a way to go if he's nail down that first team spot in France this summer.

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