Manchester United planning January move for Chelsea defender

Manchester United are reportedly weighing up a winter attempt to sign Chelsea defender Gary Cahill, who has been deprived of regular gametime under Maurizio Sarri this term.

The experienced centre-back finished the previous campaign in a strong fashion by lifting the FA Cup and he thereafter featured for the Three Lions at the World Cup where he was restricted to a cameo role.

Despite this, Cahill was expected to feature extensively under the tutelage of Sarri but that has not been the case so far with the Italian sticking with Antonio Rudiger and David Luiz for the central defensive duties in the league.

According to The Sun, United boss Jose Mourinho is monitoring the position of his former player and he could make an approach to sign him when he enters the final six months of his contract in January.

Cahill featured for just over 20 minutes of the goalless Premier League draw against West Ham United last weekend but he has since played the entire 90 minutes of the 2-1 League Cup triumph over Liverpool.

On Saturday, Chelsea are set to contest the Reds once more in the top-flight but Cahill's appearance in the starting lineup may depend on the fitness of Rudiger, who picked up a minor hamstring injury versus West Ham.