Gary Cahill
REUTERS

Chelsea have already started making waves in the next transfer window, with the club being given permission by Bolton to speak to defending sensation Gary Cahill for a deal in January.

Cahill's transfer standing has been the talk of football fans and pundits for the last three windows at least, with the England international refusing to sign an extension on his current deal at Bolton, which runs out in June 2012.

Arsenal came close to signing the 26 year old in the summer, but Arsene Wenger claimed that Bolton were 'too greedy' with their asking price, and a deal at the last minute of deadline day fell through.

Since the summer window closed, Chelsea have been connected to Cahill on numerous occasions, and Andre Villas-Boas admitted this month that the stopper is an 'interesting player' for the club.

His ability to score goals as well as shore up the backline is said to make the Aston Villa youth graduate an even more attractive prospect, and though the Blues are looking to build on their attacking style of play, they are also hoping to stop the goals building up against them as they push for a top four spot.

And Cahill would go a long way towards doing just that, and he has admitted in the past that Champions League football would be high on his agenda when choosing a future destination, which Chelsea can certainly offer in the new year.

"The situation is that the clubs, Bolton Wanderers and Chelsea, have at this moment in time agreed a fee for Gary," Owen Coyle confirmed today.

"Now it is up to Gary's representatives to speak to Chelsea.

"From our part, I've said to Gary that this is why he has representatives and that his focus is on football and football only.

"Gary's mind will be on making sure that he is ready to give a big performance for Bolton Wanderers against Wolves. He has to be ready to give everything, as he always is."

Cahill reportedly had a £17 million exit clause written into his contract, but it is assumed that Bolton would sell the star to Chelsea for much less than that figure, in order to beat the risk of losing him for nothing in the summer.

Andre Villas-Boas is also said to be on the lookout for a striker in the window, with Didier Drogba and Salamon Kalous set to leave Chelsea in January for the Africa Cup of Nations, and Fernando Torres continuing to suffer from lacklustre form.