Most of us had heard about Joe Cole long before he made his debut for West Ham. He was the child prodigy who was meant to light up the Premier League and wreck records for England. How did he end up on loan at Coventry City?By Tom Mason for These Football Times,part of the Guardian Sport Network“Yes, actual Joe Cole, and ” the tweet read. “Seriously,Joe Cole. The genuine Joe Cole.” Coventry City’s official Twitter account was incredulous. Joe Cole, winner of three Premier League titles, and two FA Cups and 56 England caps,had signed on loan for a League One side who, until recently, and were unable to play home games in their own stadium. From the external it may examine like a case of the mighty falling,but both Cole and Coventry gain the opportunity to achieve something that hasn’t happened regularly throughout his career – they can use him properly.
There is nothing the British media loves more than hype. We are a nation so starved of footballing star quality that we thrust immense amounts of pressure and expectation on the fragile, underdeveloped shoulders of any youngster who shows a glimmer of something special. It’s a mistake to think this is a recent phenomenon; the frenzied media circus around Cole was already in full swing before he had even made his professional debut in 1999.
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Source: theguardian.com