UEFA Champions League 2005-06 player's profile

Famed for his trickery and outstanding vision, Joe Cole has long been touted as the great hope of English football.

Club
A supremely gifted youngster at West Ham United FC's academy, Cole came to prominence in 1998/99, helping the club win the FA Youth Cup and breaking into the first team. By the following campaign he was a regular, and went on to make more than 100 appearances for the club. Cole signed for Chelsea FC for €9.3m after West Ham's relegation in 2002/03. After a slow start under José Mourinho, his crucial winner against Liverpool FC on 1 January 2005 transformed his fortunes as his club went on to win the Premiership and English League Cup. The following season proved to be almost as successful as Chelse won the title again with Cole continuing to improve, becoming more direct in attack and posing a real threat to some of the most accomplished defences in Europe.

National team
Cole made his England debut in a friendly against Mexico in summer 2002. He was subsequently the youngest player in Sven-Göran Eriksson's squad for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, making a single substitute's appearance against Sweden, but was unused at UEFA EURO 2004™. The much-improved midfielder was perhaps the star of a disappointing England campaign at the 2006 World Cup finals.

Did you know?
Psycho, the autobiography of his former West Ham team-mate Stuart Pearce, is Cole's favourite book.

©uefa.com 1998-2006. All rights reserved.

FIFA World Cup™ Germany 2006 player's profile

First touted as a future England star in late 1990s, Cole was not actually selected to play for his country until the end of the 2000/2001 season.
The midfielder’s dribbling and passing skills led to him going to the 2002 FIFA World Cup™ as the youngest member of the England squad but he appeared only in the match against Sweden as a 74th-minute substitute.

Has developed into a much more reliable player under Jose Mourinho’s management at Chelsea and was an England regular in qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, scoring twice.

© 2001-2006 FIFA, All Rights Reserved

UEFA EURO 2004™ player's profile

Joe Cole has long been touted as the great hope of English football. Famed for his trickery on the ball and outstanding vision, Cole has been likened to former England midfield player Paul Gascoigne.

National team
Cole made his England debut alongside West Ham United FC colleague, and fellow rising star, Michael Carrick, in a friendly against Mexico at the end of the 2001/02 season at the age of 19. He was subsequently the youngest player in Sven-Göran Eriksson's squad for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, making a single substitute's appearance against Sweden.

UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifying
Cole was on the bench for England's opening two matches and finally got a taste of the action, for 23 minutes, at home to Liechtenstein. However, he was overlooked for the rest of the campaign as England won Group 7.

Club
A supremely gifted youngster at West Ham's academy, Cole came to prominence in 1998/99, helping the club's youngsters win the FA Youth Cup and breaking into the Upton Park first team. He made nine appearances that season, and was a regular by the following campaign. He enjoyed his best season in front of goal in 2000/01 when he scored five times in 30 Premiership matches. Cole started all but two of West Ham's matches the following term, doing more than most in an ultimately futile attempt to avoid relegation.

2003/04: However, he returned immediately to the Premiership, signing a four-year contract with Chelsea FC for €9.3m. Chiefly deployed as a substitute by Claudio Ranieri, Cole only imposed himself on the side late on in the campaign, scoring his first goal in April. Played seven times in the UEFA Champions League as Chelsea reached the last four.

Did you know?
Psycho, the autobiography of his former team-mate Stuart Pearce, is Cole's favourite book.

©uefa.com 1998-2006. All rights reserved.

BBC's UEFA EURO 2004 player's profile

Cole's £6.6m transfer to Chelsea during the close season put him firmly in the spotlight, and Blues boss Claudio Ranieri is far from being his only admirer.

His vision and invention are not in question, but Cole needs to show he has the maturity to go with the tricks if he wants to prove he is worth a permanent place on the international stage.

Cole, despite regularly being little more than a substitute at Stamford Bridge, was called up for England's friendly against Denmark and did his cause no harm by scoring.

But he faces a fierce fight in one of the most hotly-contested areas of Eriksson's side.

©bbc.co.uk 2004. All rights reserved.