Deaks Chats With Former England International Footballer, Joe Cole
Joe Cole began his career with West Ham United where, after breaking into the first team in 1999, he played more than 160 Premier League games over six seasons in two separate spells. He was one of a number of players who left West Ham United in the summer of 2003 after the club was relegated. Joe signed for Chelsea where he spent a further seven seasons playing over 180 Premier League games. Joe won seven trophies, including three Premier League titles, two FA Cups and a League Cup. He left Chelsea in July 2010 to join Liverpool and a year later he was playing for Lille in France. He returned to West Ham in 2013 followed by spells with Aston Villa and Coventry City. Joe now works as a TV pundit.
Joe was capped for England at U16, U18, U21 and was a full international between 2001 and 2010 gaining 56 caps. He was considered by many as one of the most technically gifted English players of all time.
Deaks: Hello Joe, it’s an absolute pleasure talking to you. Being a West Ham fan, I have followed your career since the days when the newspapers, in the days before the internet, would tell us West Ham fans that we had a supremely gifted kid playing in the academy and that Manchester United were desperate to snap him up. Apparently, Sir Alex Ferguson would phone the then West Ham manager, Harry Redknapp, on a regular basis to enquire how you were progressing. As a youngster how aware were you of the frenzy of attention that surrounded you?
Joe: I wasn’t really aware of the hype until I began to get picked by England School Boys and it would have been around that time that I began to get noticed by the media and as you say, by Sir Alex Ferguson. I signed for West Ham United despite other options being available to me because I loved the club. They were, and still are, a family club and Harry Redknapp was very warm towards all of us.
Deaks: I recall the players that came out of the West Ham academy at the time. In a two-year period, we had Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Michael Carrick, Jermaine Defoe, Glen Johnson and yourself. Never mind West Ham winning the World Cup in 1966, they could have formed the England team for the next ten years. Rio Ferdinand has spoken about him wanting the club to build a side around those players and of his disappointment that he was sold first. It would have been some side wouldn’t it? Do you have any regrets?
Joe: Regret is not a word that I would use but yes, West Ham would have had some side if they had kept our group together but unfortunately, they needed the money. Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard had already been sold and when West Ham were relegated this forced the club to sell Jermaine Defoe, Glen Johnson, Michael Carrick and myself (to Chelsea). It would have been a difficult decision for Terrence Brown, the then Chairman, to make but the drop from the Premier League is very costly to any club.
Deaks: It has always amazed me that a club can spot talent in a six-year old kid playing in a local park. My sons played youth football from that age and I do recall a couple of their pals that stood out, indeed one was spotted by Chelsea and was taken on an apprenticeship but nothing came of it. What do you think makes a 6-year old kid stand out and what ultimately allows them to make it?
Joe: It is very hard to know if a kid will make it at that age and clubs do take in a lot of youngsters only to discard them before they make the first team. I believe that kids must be allowed to enjoy themselves first and foremost and grow organically and then what will be will be.
Deaks: I love watching you and Carlton Cole working together on the television especially when you were commenting on the Hammers in Europe. I won’t ask you if you miss playing, however, do you ever see yourself taking up management at some point so that you can enjoy the day to day involvement again?
Joe: Coley and I had a great team around us and I loved working with them all and following West Ham in Europe. This was definitely some of my best work on TV. We knew David Moyes was onto something special and we kept pushing to be involved and of course it ended with that momentous night in Prague. I have always taken my work, both playing football and working as a pundit, very seriously so I am pleased it was so well received.
I would love to go into management at some point in the future and I am taking small steps at the present time. I am five years retired from the game now and I recognise there is no one way to get into football management. I shall consider youth academy work or entry into the lower leagues although owners look for different qualities these days and being an ex-player is not always a big plus.
Deaks: How aware were you of breaking my heart, my brother's heart and that of my 15-year old son when you left West Ham for Chelsea in 2003?
Joe: I had a great relationship with the West Ham fans during my two spells at the club but all good things have to come to an end. West Ham fans appreciate flair players and players that give their all for the shirt and I always felt that I did that. I am currently writing a book and will discuss that further in the book.
Note from Deaks to his family: My Christmas present sorted thank you!
Deaks: Finally Joe, as a fellow Hammers fan and someone who is well informed about the club’s management and organisation behind the scenes, what on-field achievements and progress as a club can us fans realistically expect over the next five years?
Joe: West Ham have embarked on a new set up with Tim Stiedten as Technical Director and Julen Lopetegui as head coach. It’s a bold new approach for the club and the fans and the club need to be patient. Bayer Leverkusen did very well under Tim Stiedten and Xavi Alonso and it is often a small group of 3-4 personnel that drives a club on with the rest all as the supporting cast. West Ham will hope that Tim Stiedten was the key to Bayer Leverkusen’s success and if that is the case then I see great things ahead for the club.
Deaks: Thank you for talking to Over the Edge Joe, it’s been an absolute pleasure.