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During the mid-2000s, few one-on-one duels in international football were as thrilling as Cristiano Ronaldo’s battles against Ashley Cole.
England and Portugal were pitted together in the knockout stages of the 2004 European Championship and the World Cup two years later, as the pair - widely considered the best in their respective positions - battled on the world stage.
And while Cole and Ronaldo were familiar from their Premier League meetings, these battles in major tournaments are the ones that remain emblazoned in the memories of supporters.
Ashley Cole on facing Cristiano Ronaldo on the world stage
Cole would win 107 England caps over a 14-year international career during which he established himself as perhaps the best left-back that the Three Lions have ever produced, but these battles with the Portuguese icon would push him to his limits.
“It was never just me, I had players who helped,” Cole tells FourFourTwo when asked about these battles.
“He made me do the splits once and that got into my head – that was when I played for Arsenal, at Old Trafford. I’m blaming my boots!”
All in all, the two squared off 14 times over the course of five years in the 2000s, meaning Cole got to know the player better than most on the pitch.
“He was a fantastic player, he could move to the inside or outside,” the former Arsenal and Chelsea defender continues.
“He dropped his shoulder to go inside and because he had quick feet, he did a stepover, went on the outside of me, I lost my footing and slipped.”
And in this day and age, these kind of moments do not get swept under the carpet.
“Fantastic skill, but to this day I still get sent it on Instagram… it has haunted me!”
It is a sign of Cole’s determination that this incident only served to sharpen his focus.
“I had a lot of friends in the England team bantering me about that, saying: “He made you look silly…” I thought, ‘This can’t happen again.’
“I didn’t want to be beaten, I didn’t want someone to take my career away from me – so I tried to rise to the occasion. I wouldn’t say I got the upper hand in both games, but we had good battles.”
Could It Be Coming Home? with Joe Cole and Ashley Cole is brought to you by Carling, official sponsor of the Emirates FA Cup and Adobe Women’s FA Cup. Watch the show on YouTube and Spotify, or listen to it wherever you get your podcasts
