Despite possessing pace, power and height, Ranieri's 'Little Lion' has struggled to make himself king of the Premiership jungle
A powerful, destructive striker, Cole began his career at Chelsea and was marked out early on as a top talent.
After impressing in his first few senior games in 2001, Cole was dubbed “the best young player I’ve ever worked with” by then-Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri, who also, somewhat strangely, called the 6ft 3in Cole his "Little Lion".
Unfortunately for Cole the club already boasted the world-class talent of Eidur Gudjohnsen, Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink and Gianfranco Zola, and the Englishman failed to seal a first-team spot. He did, however, get regular football for England U21 – whom he chose to represent despite also being eligible via his parents for either Sierra Leone or Nigeria – and scored six goals in 19 games.
At club level, he endured unsuccessful loans at Wolves, Charlton and Aston Villa before signing for West Ham for an undisclosed fee in 2006. Despite brief flashes of quality, he has yet to fulfil the expectations of his Italian mentor.