Midfield maestro, Joe Cole returned to the starting line up at the weekend and claimed a trio of assists in the 6-0 thrashing of Bury...
Ex-England international, Joe Cole, was at the heart of everything positive about Coventry City’s first win in five league games at the weekend.
The 34-year old was instrumental in directing and organising the young Sky Blues side and was able to use his experience to command the midfield area.
Saturday’s starting XI had an average age of just 24 and Cole spoke of the importance of his role as a leader:
“All top sides need to have ruthlessness in the locker - it’s important for the younger players in the squad.
“As an older boy I like to think I can help them - as a brother figure rather than a father figure!”
Cole assisted three of the six goals scored against Bury and was included in the Football League’s team of the week as a result.
His contribution helped calm the midfield third and gave the attacking threesome of Adam Armstrong, Jacob Murphy and James Maddison (who scored three goals between them) the creative license to go forward.
“We can take a lot of pride from the performance. All the ugly stuff in football, the attitude and application, winning second balls and turn-overs, we did that exceptionally well.
“When you want to win titles and get promotions, the simple things do it, not necessarily having the best technical players but the willingness. If we keep doing that, our quality will show,” Cole commented.
Cole’s performance was indicative of a career that boasts 56 international caps and over 300 Premier League appearances and the midfielder believes it was the mature approach to the game that secured the win:
“It was good to get the 90 in, puts me in good stead for the next game. We’ve got to remember what we did well, how we started and the attitude.”
The ex-West Ham and Chelsea man was pleased to play 90-minutes for the first time since the Southend (A) fixture and is confident in the current crop of Sky Blues’ players:
“I genuinely want to see these lads go on and I want to see this club do well - some of these lads can be top top Premier League players. It’s nice to have an influence and I enjoyed it today [against Bury]."