“I’m ready to lead a group as a manager now – I’ve had six or seven years to find my voice as a coach, and I have belief in myself” New Cesena boss Ashley Cole has exclusively told FourFourTwo why it’s the right time for him to become a gaffer

Ashley Cole won 107 caps for England as a player – now, he’s become a manager for the very first time after taking charge of Italian club Cesena.

The 45-year-old had time in Italy as a player with Roma, and has spent several years coaching with Derby, Everton, Birmingham and the FA since his retirement in 2019 – helping England’s under 21s win two consecutive Euros, also having a stint with the senior side during Lee Carsley’s spell as interim boss.

He’s agreed to take the helm at Cesena until the end of the season – the Serie B side are currently eighth in the table, with an outside chance of promotion to the top flight.

Why the timing is right for Ashley Cole to become a manager

FourFourTwo recently visited Ashley Cole and his former Chelsea and England team-mate Joe Cole at the recording of their podcast Could It Be Magic?.

Ashley confirmed then that he was ready to become a manager in his own right, and that has now come to fruition.

Discussing his time as a coach with England, he said: “It’s been great, I’ve been working now for five years, it’s been a great learning journey for me to develop and get to where I’ve got.

“The FA have definitely been a big part of that and Lee Carsley has been amazing for me, a mentor, who really gave me a lot of responsibility to go to the next level. We’ve been successful, we’ve won two Euros back to back and it’s gone really well.

“The seniors was a great opportunity as well to go up and work with them, to be around top players again, and we got a good response from them.”

Cole also worked in Chelsea’s academy early on, as he gained vital experience. Asked if the last few years as a coach had given him the desire to become a manager in his own right soon, he said: “Yeah, for sure. I think I’ve done my development, if you want to call it my scholarship of being a coach.

“I’ve been doing it for maybe seven years now, from when I worked with younger players to find my voice and find myself as a coach.

“Now certainly six or seven years down the line, I think I’m ready to lead a group. I have belief in myself.”

There will be more from Ashley and Joe Cole in FourFourTwo soon.

Could It Be Magic? with Joe Cole and Ashley Cole, brought to you by Carling, the official sponsor of the Emirates FA Cup and Adobe Women’s FA Cup. You can watch the show on YouTube and Spotify or listen to it wherever you get your podcasts.