GARY Cahill still has huge hurdles to overcome if he is to become a Premiership star of the future.

That's the verdict of Burnley boss Steve Cotterill, who admits the 18-year-old rookie has played a major role during his one-month loan spell from Aston Villa.

Reserve team regular Cahill, who only made his first team debut three weeks ago, has agreed to remain at Turf Moor for a further month to continue his footballing education.

And Cotterill intends to keep a watchful eye on the England U20 defender in the short term after admitting he has no hope of snapping the stopper up from Villa on a permanent deal.

The Clarets chief said: "Is Gary better than Frank Sinclair or John McGreal at the moment? The answer at this time would probably be 'no' - but he has a great future ahead of him.

"It's hard to get players in that are better than what you've got, but they have to at least fit into your team ethic and Gary has done that.

"Premiership reserve team football is different to what you come up against in the Championship.

"A lot of the reserve games will be pass, pass, pass, whereas in the Championship it's also more 'up and at 'em', so he has had to deal with the physical side of it as well.

"You also have to deal with the mental side of it if you get a little bit tired, so he's going to have to deal with that one.

"He's come out and played a few games and now it depends on what happens when he sits a game out and then goes back in. He's only a young boy, so we've got to keep a close eye on him."

Cotterill added: "For a young lad to settle so quickly is terrific, but that's also credit to the boys in the dressing room.

"He obviously knew Richard Chaplow from the England set-up, so it was nice to see a face he knew, but credit also goes to people like McGreal, Sinclair and Michael Duff, who have all partnered him in that central defensive role."