There was a bit of a dispute between Chelsea and Cole when he moved to Villa on loan, but sadly for Villa, the deal still went ahead.
Cole’s 2004-05 season at Villa wasn’t exactly eventful, with the striker only managing three goals in 30 appearances for the club.
The former-England youth international bagged a goal on his debut for the club in a 2-0 win over Southampton. Things were looking extremely promising for the young striker, as he was a regular England under-21 international, and a promising Chelsea youth prospect. Unfortunately, the Villa faithful had no idea what was coming.
After netting again towards the end of August, the Villa faithful were pleased with Cole’s performances. Little did they know he wouldn’t find the back of the net for another 23 games. Cole completely lost his fitness and form toward the end of 2004. His frequent knee injuries led to an injury ridden season for the striker, which saw him make a lot of appearances off the bench, only managing to start 18 games in the league.
In February 2005, Cole picked up a severe injury whilst on England u21 duty against Holland in a friendly at Pride Park. Villa fans were counting their blessings as the unprolific striker was looking at an operation which would’ve seen him out for a long time. Sadly for the Villans, Cole returned to football just a month and a half after his injury and managed to somehow play seven more times for the club and score again before being shipped back to London.
An uninspiring loan at Villa Park led to a permanent move to West Ham a year later where he remained until this summer when he was released by the Hammers. He is yet to find a new club.
