GARY Cahill is going to have to wait,according to his Chelsea boss.

The £7m defender pic) was again an unused substitute last night when Chelsea drew 1-1 at Swansea's Liberty Stadium. The former Bolton man has failed to play a minute since arriving at Stamford Bridge, and forced to watch his new club take on three promoted sides.

Villas-Boas said: “I think we have found solidarity in terms of how the defence has played recently in January.

“The team has been playing well, and this changes the momentum of the team. And giving Gary the first game, not that he doesn't have the quality to come straight into the team, but to change the dynamic of the team – we decided not to do it (against Swansea).

“This pairing (David Luiz and Branislav Ivanovic), as you know, has been used before during this season; and even this back four.
“And we decided to stick with it for this game. I spoke to Gary regarding the decision, and it was well-taken.”

Villas-Boas decision to play Bosingwa at right back and Ivanovic in the centre, rather than Cahill in the middle and Ivanovic out wide, was the focus of concern among many fans pre-match.

A mistake by Bosingwa was at the heart of the incident in which former Chelsea man Scott Sinclair opened the scoring for the hosts. However, Villas-Boas will certainly feel vindicated in his decision by the role Bosingwa played in Chelsea's late equaliser.

When Chelsea next play, on Sunday against Manchester United, it will have been over a month since Cahill last took to the field – in Bolton's 1-2 win over Everton at Goodison Park. And the assumption is that he will again be benched for that game: with Luiz playing alongside captain John Terry at the back.

Chelsea completed the transfer window yesterday with the signings of Belgian winger Kevin De Bruyne, and Nottingham Forest's 18-year-old forward Patrick Bamford. Neither is expected to feature in the first team this season.

Villas-Boas said: “We strengthened in the most important position where we thought we would need strengthening. And we made the deal for Gary, which we pursued for quite some time.

“In terms of what we needed for the squad, it was a good (transfer window for Chelsea).”