Carlton Cole

Chelsea

2001–02 season

Cole was born in Croydon, London, to a Nigerian father and Sierra Leonean mother. He began his career as a trainee with Chelsea, before signing his first professional contract with the club in October 2000. He made his first-team debut on 6 April 2002 as a substitute for Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in a 3–0 home victory against Everton. He made his first senior start three weeks later, scoring a goal as Chelsea beat Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium. He made one more appearance for Chelsea in the 2001–02 season, in a 3–1 home defeat against Aston Villa in May.

2002–03 season

Cole started the 2002–03 season in the Chelsea first-team squad, scoring a goal and making another in the opening match of the season in a 3–2 win over Charlton Athletic after coming on as a substitute for Gianfranco Zola. He suffered a hairline fracture in his leg in August but returned to action in a League Cup tie against Gillingham on 6 November, scoring both Chelsea goals in a 2–1 home win in the third round. Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri described Cole as being the best young player that he had ever coached, saying, "I've never coached a young player like Carlton. He's fantastic even though he hasn't really started his career yet. He has a very long contract, and, in my opinion, a very big future at Chelsea". However, with Eiður Guðjohnsen, Hasselbaink and Zola available for selection, Cole's first team opportunities were limited and he was…

Cole represented England at youth levels, making five under-19 appearances, two under-20 appearances and 19 under-21 appearances (scoring six goals). He made his debut for the England national team on 11 February 2009 in a friendly match against Spain. Coming on as a 75th-minute substitute, he saw a late effort cleared off the line by Carlos Marchena, after latching onto a David Beckham pass. He made seven appearances for England, all from the substitutes' bench, which is, as of June 2021, a national record.

Club

International

In December 2018, Cole rejoined West Ham United to work with the club's academy players, providing support to under-18 coaches Jack Collison and Mark Phillips.