About

Name: Ashley Cole
Club: Chelsea
Date of Birth: December 20, 1980
Birthplace: Stepney, London, England
Height: 172 cm
Weight: 67 Kg
Previous Clubs: Arsenal, Crystal Palace (loan)

Cole started his career at his local club Arsenal as a teenager. He signed as a professional on 25 February 2000. He had made his debut for the first team as a striker on 30 November 1999 against Middlesbrough at the age of 18, his Premier League debut for Arsenal came on 14 May 2000 against Newcastle. Before he fully broke into the Arsenal side, he spent part of the 1999 – 2000 season on loan at Crystal Palace, where he played 14 league matches and scored one goal, a long-range half-volley against Blackburn Rovers. After an injury to Sylvinho, Arsenal's established Brazilian left-back, in autumn 2000, Cole came on as his replacement, and remained first-choice even after Sylvinho's recovery.

With Arsenal, he won the Premier League twice (in 2002 and 2004), and the FA Cup three times (in 2002, 2003 and 2005). Although injured for much of the 2005-06 season, he recovered in time to play in Arsenal's UEFA Champions League Final defeat to Barcelona at the end of the season. In total he made 228 first-team appearances for Arsenal, scoring 9 goals.



Cole was given the number 3 shirt at Chelsea, and made his first appearance for the club as a substitute for Wayne Bridge in their 2-1 win over Charlton Athletic on 9 September. He also issued a public statement saying he forgave Arsenal for how he felt he was treated during his time there. However, he was not forgiven by Arsenal's fans, as they dubbed him "Cashley" and waved fake 20-pound notes with his face and inflatable mobile phones when Chelsea met Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on 10 December. Coles performance in the match was affected by this.

On 31 January 2007, Cole suffered a serious knee injury in the 3-0 victory over Blackburn Rovers in a Premier League game at Stamford Bridge, although after a scan it was revealed to be not as bad as first thought, with Chelsea optimistic that he would return before the end of the 2006-07 season. Cole did indeed make a return at the end of the season, playing in the last twelve minutes of the 2007 FA Cup Final at the new Wembley Stadium, against Manchester United, although initial reports said that Jose Mourinho had dropped him from the final.

In an interview with the official club magazine, he said he felt he was 'rubbish' and hadn't reached his full potential, the Chelsea fans however seemed happy with him after good feedback on the fans forums. One of his best performances in his debut season was against Manchester United at Old Trafford, where he kept fast paced winger Cristiano Ronaldo at bay for the whole 90 minutes. The game ended 1-1.