He burst onto the scene at West Ham as the much-hyped Messiah of English football, the new Gascoigne and the worst kept secret in football. It is a reputation he has taken some time to deal with, yet he has become a key man for club and country.
Harry Redknapp was undoubtedly behind this as he tried to protect his young player by giving him some substitute appearances during 1998/99 and a few starts during 1999/2000.
He had made his debut for the Hammers as a 65th minute replacement for Eyal Berkovic in a 1-1 home FA Cup draw with Swansea City in January 1999, aged 17.
With West Ham's relegation to the First Division, Cole was sold to balance the books after he made it clear he would not sign a new contract. They had no choice but to accept Chelsea's £6.6million bid in August 2003.
Cole signed a four-year deal to join the Chelsea revolution after scoring 13 goals in 150 games for West Ham.
After winning the league under Jose Mourinho in 2004/5, he had cemented his place in the England starting line-up, bagging a superb goal against Sweden in the 2006 World Cup as England reached the quarter-finals.
Despite his injury problems during the 2006/7 season he featured in the FA Cup final success over Manchester United, adding to his two Premiership medals, Community Shield and League Cup won with Chelsea.
Niggly injuries again struck during 2007/8, yet he maintained a level of consistency that he has always been criticised for not possessing. Fans voted him their 'Player of the Year' in a season which ended in disappointment in Moscow.
No comments:
Post a Comment