It was the beginning of the 2010-11 Premier League season and Liverpool had a new manager at the helm. Roy Hodgson was brought in from Fulham, and his first managerial signing was gifted English midfielder Joe Cole on a free transfer from Chelsea. It was expected that Cole would make a great partnership in midfield with Steven Gerrard.
It led to this quote from the Liverpool skipper:
“Messi can do some amazing things, but anything he can do Joe can do as well, if not better,” Gerrard said. “He used to shock us in training by doing footy tricks with a golf ball that most players can’t even do with a football.”
“I really fancy Joe for the [player of the year] award this season.”
Five years later, Cole has been signed on a 35-day emergency loan with Coventry City — a League One club — after failing to earn consistent minutes with middling Aston Villa. As a result, Gerrard’s quote has been used as a punchline for many articles regarding Cole’s move. After all, it is shocking. Users at Wikipedia even had some fun at Cole’s expense (The edit was quickly removed, however).
Joe Cole's actual Wikipedia page right now pic.twitter.com/nA82aJEoK3
— Miles Surrey (@HKSurrey) October 16, 2015Once heralded as one of the most gifted midfielders in the game, the 33-year-old Cole will look for playing time in England’s third tier. Cole’s fall from grace was quick and ruthless, but how did it happen?
One factor, to be sure, was his initial deployment at Liverpool under Hodgson. Cole’s best years at Chelsea were when Mourinho deployed him as an inside-out winger, playing on the left side of the pitch, while being naturally right-footed. Though he expressed interest in playing a more central role, he thrived as a winger with The Blues and played his best football under Mourinho.
The move to Liverpool granted Cole his wish: He played centrally alongside Gerrard. But the alliance was a failure. On the year, Cole only started nine EPL games – playing in 20 total – with two goals and one assist. Hardly the makings of a playmaker, and certainly not worthy of a Messi comparison.
Cole spent the next season on loan to French club Lille, and he performed better. However, returning to Liverpool — and new manager Brendan Rodgers — Cole was used sparingly at best, failing to record a single EPL start.
It didn’t take long for The Reds to cut ties with the once-heralded cornerstone of its midfield, with Cole joining the team that brought him up their youth system: West Ham United.
Unfortunately, he struggled at West Ham too. His troubles at West Ham were in large part due to another factor in his decline: injuries. At the beginning of the 2013-14 season, Cole suffered a hamstring tear in theCapital One Cup, a setback that needed six weeks to heal. By the time he returned to the team in October, he once again failed to consistently find playing time. After scoring in the club’s opener, before the hamstring tear, he scored two for the rest of the season.
Since joining Aston Villa in June of 2014, another factor has plagued Cole. He been out of favor with both of its managers, Paul Lambert and Tim Sherwood. Last season, he totalled 11 EPL appearances, and had yet to register one this year.
CONFIRMED: #CCFC complete loan signing of Joe Cole from @AVFCOfficial until November 22nd. http://t.co/wCp1c2bJ0k pic.twitter.com/TpMKXn19Uq
— Coventry City (@Coventry_City) October 19, 2015Joe Cole's Coventry Loan
Which leads us to his move to Coventry. Granted, it is only 35 days to begin with, which puts him in line to play seven possible games for the club. From there, Cole’s future is uncertain. What is certain is that Cole made this move because he loves the game and he wants playing time. Even if it means possibly cutting into his wages.
“If I was coming here for the money I wouldn’t be here. I’ve been playing in an era where we are very lucky and we appreciate that as footballers … “I just want to play football, regardless of the level, proper football, competitive football. I want to play for the right time and the right manager who plays the right way. I’m just excited to play a game,” he said.
It’s easy to poke fun at Cole, of course. It’s atypical for a three-time EPL champion to willingly play in England’s third tier. However, it would’ve been just as easy for him to continue sitting on the Villa bench collecting his wages. So, perhaps, instead of continuing to deride Cole for playing for Coventry, we should commend him for his fighting spirit.
After all, it was Gerrard who made the Messi comparison five years ago, and Joe Cole isn’t entirely to blame for his decline. Now, he just wants to keep playing the game he loves. Nobody can fault him for that.
