‘Every club outside of the top 10 in the Premier League should have been banging on the door to get Ashley Cole in – he’s done everything right’ Joe Cole tells FFT why he’s backing his former Chelsea and England team-mate to be a success in management

Ashley Cole secured his first win as a manager at the weekend, after taking charge of Serie B side Cesena.

The 45-year-old had previously 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.

Last week he agreed to take the helm at Cesena until the end of the season – while he lost his opening match in charge 3-0 at Mantova, with some suggesting he’d changed formation without giving the players enough time to work on the new system, they responded with a 3-1 win over promotion-chasing Catanzaro on Saturday.

Joe Cole backs former team-mate for success

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Prior to his appointment, FourFourTwo had 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 had revealed on that occasion that he was ready to become a manager, should the right opportunity come along, and Joe explained why he was sure he’d be a great appointment for someone.

“For a player of his quality and how diligent he’s been in his preparation, every club outside of probably the top 10 in the Premier League should have been banging on the door to get him in, in my opinion,” Joe Cole told FourFourTwo.

“That’s not just my opinion, that’s from talking to the England players who worked with him, the under 21 players, and seeing him work.”

Ashley admitted he’d previously had conversations with clubs that hadn’t led to an appointment, and Joe said he was surprised that he hadn’t already been offered a manager’s job – saying that the former full-back should have had the pick of clubs, rather than needing to convince them to give him a job.

“I won’t big him up too much, but honestly, I think it’s incredible, take away the fact he’s my mate, how people in football have been getting jobs, yet Ash has done everything right,” Joe said. “He should have been interviewing the clubs!”

Could It Be Magic? with Joe Cole and Ashley Cole is 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.