Topic: The return of Cole....

[macca888]

He's lost that yard of pace that would have been useful to us, he's not a ACM, he was a winger.

He's a lovely guy, but I don't think he's good enough. It would be good to get him off the books, Lille will be good for him for the rest of his career.

Exactly. He came across in that interview as a really nice lad, but I'm not certain he's got enough any more to be anything other than a squad player. Then again, unless it was an outright sale I can't see it being sensible to loan him out again.

[suredross]

Premier League - Hazard completes Chelsea move thanks to Cole
Mon, 04 Jun 17:17:00 2012


Hazard announced last week on his Twitter feed that he was on the way to Chelsea and he has now completed his transfer to the European champions and FA Cup holders after passing a medical.
The fee is undisclosed but according to media reports it is around £32 million.
"I spoke to Joe Cole and what he said above all was that Chelsea was the right club for me," Hazard said.
"As somebody who loves the club himself, he said he could really see me in the shirt, so when I see him next I'll tell him he was right," he added of Liverpool player Cole who spent last season on loan at French team Lille.
The versatile 21-year-old Hazard, who has been with Lille since 2005, will join up with Chelsea's squad for pre-season training next month.
A target for many of Europe's top clubs, Hazard said he was delighted to join the Londoners who next season will attempt to improve on their disappointing sixth-place finish in the 2011-12 Premier League.
"This is a wonderful club and I can't wait to get started and for the season to start so I can meet my new team mates, the supporters and all the people who are involved," he said.
Hazard, named best Ligue 1 player in the past two seasons, led Lille to the French title in 2011 and scored 20 goals in the last campaign including a hat-trick in the final game of the season to secure a third-place finish for the club.
He will join fellow Belgians Thibaut Courtois, Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne at 2009-10 Premier League winners Chelsea.
"It's a dream come true for me," said Hazard. "I want to play as many games as possible, score as many goals as possible and win a place in the hearts of the supporters.
"It's true that initially there were a number of clubs in for me but when Chelsea won the Champions League I thought, 'why not?'," added Hazard.
"Ultimately for a player it's all about winning things. I want to win as many trophies as possible which is another reason why I came here as Chelsea have been winning things for a long time now."
Hazard will not feature in this month's European Championship in Ukraine and Poland because Belgium failed to qualify.
Eurosport / Reuters / PA Sport

Some interesting comments in the bolded...

[DoogyRev]

Premier League - Hazard completes Chelsea move thanks to Cole
Mon, 04 Jun 17:17:00 2012
Hazard announced last week on his Twitter feed that he was on the way to Chelsea and he has now completed his transfer to the European champions and FA Cup holders after passing a medical.
The fee is undisclosed but according to media reports it is around £32 million.
"I spoke to Joe Cole and what he said above all was that Chelsea was the right club for me," Hazard said.
"As somebody who loves the club himself, he said he could really see me in the shirt, so when I see him next I'll tell him he was right," he added of Liverpool player Cole who spent last season on loan at French team Lille.
The versatile 21-year-old Hazard, who has been with Lille since 2005, will join up with Chelsea's squad for pre-season training next month.
A target for many of Europe's top clubs, Hazard said he was delighted to join the Londoners who next season will attempt to improve on their disappointing sixth-place finish in the 2011-12 Premier League.
"This is a wonderful club and I can't wait to get started and for the season to start so I can meet my new team mates, the supporters and all the people who are involved," he said.
Hazard, named best Ligue 1 player in the past two seasons, led Lille to the French title in 2011 and scored 20 goals in the last campaign including a hat-trick in the final game of the season to secure a third-place finish for the club.
He will join fellow Belgians Thibaut Courtois, Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne at 2009-10 Premier League winners Chelsea.
"It's a dream come true for me," said Hazard. "I want to play as many games as possible, score as many goals as possible and win a place in the hearts of the supporters.
"It's true that initially there were a number of clubs in for me but when Chelsea won the Champions League I thought, 'why not?'," added Hazard.
"Ultimately for a player it's all about winning things. I want to win as many trophies as possible which is another reason why I came here as Chelsea have been winning things for a long time now."
Hazard will not feature in this month's European Championship in Ukraine and Poland because Belgium failed to qualify.
Eurosport / Reuters / PA Sport

Some interesting comments in the bolded...

Doesn't surprise me at all that - one playground footballer bigging up another. There will be the odd moments of genius as there was with Joe Cole, but when the going gets tough and win or loss depends upon showing real class with a 'killer' forward pass, it will be interesting to see if Mr Hazard can justify his price tag.

[henry]

now Kuyt left, i think Joe Cole would be a good replacement on the right side midfield.

[Mr Rossi]

now Kuyt left, i think Joe Cole would be a good replacement on the right side midfield.

I dont.

[peachybum]

So according to someone from goal.com the Lille coach has said on TV that we want to keep Cole. Not surprising given Rodgers & Cole's time together at Chelsea.

amar singh ‏@amarjourno
"Joe Cole will stay at #Liverpool. The new staff have decided to keep him" - Lille coach Rudi Garcia tells Canal+

[ArcticRed]

Money saved in the transfer window, I guess... *sigh*

[Trumps]

Most coaches like to get their favourites in. Luckily for Rodgers, we have one maybe two already on our books (if he truly is a fan of Aquilani's).

Let's face it, we're not going to get anybody to take Cole off our hands and paying part of his wages isn't that palatable either. Best see if Rodgers can get some use out of him.

[Crixus]

Doesn't surprise me at all that - one playground footballer bigging up another. There will be the odd moments of genius as there was with Joe Cole, but when the going gets tough and win or loss depends upon showing real class with a 'killer' forward pass, it will be interesting to see if Mr Hazard can justify his price tag.

Bullshit. If Hazard came to us you wouldn't be saying the same thing. You'll be eating your words next season. Its brilliant that you based your info on the England game and even in that his final abll to Fellaini on two occasions inside the box was pretty precise.

I dont.

I do. Think Rodgers can get the best out of him. He's a technical player, so will fit into our philosophy without us buying anyone.

So according to someone from goal.com the Lille coach has said on TV that we want to keep Cole. Not surprising given Rodgers & Cole's time together at Chelsea.

amar singh ‏@amarjourno
"Joe Cole will stay at #Liverpool. The new staff have decided to keep him" - Lille coach Rudi Garcia tells Canal+

Satisfied with this. If we keep Maxi, we'll have alongside Bellamy, 3 experienced back up players. Keep Aquialni too we'll have a brilliant first team. Overall a very good strong squad without spending a penny yet.

[Barefoot Doctor]

I wouldn't put much faith in what the Lille boss is saying. He was always coming back - I've got little doubt we'll try to move him on, but we need to pretend he's part of our plans until he's been moved on.

[decky]

Bullshit. If Hazard came to us you wouldn't be saying the same thing. You'll be eating your words next season. Its brilliant that you based your info on the England game and even in that his final abll to Fellaini on two occasions inside the box was pretty precise.

I do. Think Rodgers can get the best out of him. He's a technical player, so will fit into our philosophy without us buying anyone.

Satisfied with this. If we keep Maxi, we'll have alongside Bellamy, 3 experienced back up players. Keep Aquialni too we'll have a brilliant first team. Overall a very good strong squad without spending a penny yet.

Not strictly true. They will cost us around £5m in wages next season

[woof]

Can't see how Joe Cole would fit into BR's team. He offers very little pace and his age has something to do with it. I think he's played his best football at Chelsea

[MassDriver]

Can't see how Joe Cole would fit into BR's team. He offers very little pace and his age has something to do with it. I think he's played his best football at Chelsea

He won't necessarily need pace if he plays in a more central role. All he needs to do is play with intelligence and use his vision to create.

Think he might be retained by Rodgers and deployed in a quite a few games. As I've said before I still think he can be an asset for Liverpool. And not an NPA. 

[Vidocq]

the title of this thread reminds me of some dark lord

[spider-neil]

Being a forward in a 4-3-3 is about guile, intelligence and movement not about pace and power.
I'm won't say cole will be a success in the new formation but I will say that it wont be lack of pace that holds him back.

[Fordy]

Rodgers knows Cole well and I fully believe Cole will be apart of the Liverpool squad next season.

[red_lfc_costello]

amar singh‏@amarjourno

"Joe Cole will stay at #Liverpool. The new staff have decided to keep him" - Lille coach Rudi Garcia tells Canal+

[scouse29]

now Kuyt left, i think Joe Cole would be a good replacement on the right side midfield.

Oh dear. Cole on the right is the answer to all our prayers.

[scouse29]

Rodgers knows Cole well and I fully believe Cole will be apart of the Liverpool squad next season.

What do you expect him to offer?

[Art Vandelay]

If, as believed, FSG are unhappy with the level of our wage bill then surely he's the biggest waste on there.  Let's get rid and spend the 90k a week on something that will actually contribute to the club.

[Mr Rossi]

amar singh‏@amarjourno

"Joe Cole will stay at #Liverpool. The new staff have decided to keep him" - Lille coach Rudi Garcia tells Canal+

Who the hell is amar singh?

[didi shamone]

Who the hell is amar singh?

He only singhs when he,s winning...

[Les Willis]

Not sure how reputable this site is but:

http://www.thesportreview.com/tsr/2012/06/joe-cole-liverpool-return-lille-loan/

Joe Cole will return to Liverpool this summer after his season-long loan at Lille, according to the Ligue 1 club’s manager.

The 30-year-old midfielder made 38 appearances for the French club last season, scoring four goals since joining the club on a year-long deal on transfer deadline day last August.

“Joe Cole will stay at Liverpool,” Lille boss Rudi Garcia told Canal+. “The new staff has decided to keep him.

“We will keep very good memories of the player but also of the man.”

Cole sealed a move to Anfield when he was signed by former Reds boss Roy Hodgson on a free transfer on a four-year deal in July 2010.

But the midfielder managed just three goals and two assists in a largely disappointing campaign for the former Chelsea man, before he was loaned out to Lille by new manager Kenny Dalglish after the Scot took charge mid-way through the 2010-11 season.

[Fordy]

What do you expect him to offer?

He will be playing in an AM role or RM.

It's not about what I expect him to offer - Rodgers is a fan and will use him as part of the squad.

[Dirk18Kuyt]

Yeah he's definitely here next season unless something changes now I think. Clearly Rodgers wants him and I'm looking forward to it to be honest! Hopefully he can bring out his best.

And please tell me we aren't bitter because he told Hazard to go to Chelsea? He probably did us a favour as otherwise he'd have gone to the mancs, either one. Plus he's a prick and it would have made him even worse...

[spider-neil]

I think if you are sending out a player and paying 60% of his wages you may as well keep him.
Cole is effective taking Kuyt's place on the bench. I think it was beyond daft to give an injury prone 28 year old a 4 year contract, IN-SANE.

[Les Willis]

To be honest, Cole is probably much better suited to a Rodgers side than he was a Hodgson side. The tactics might actually bring the best out of him.

[MassDriver]

To be honest, Cole is probably much better suited to a Rodgers side than he was a Hodgson side. The tactics might actually bring the best out of him.

Exactly.

We have a lot of games to play next season. I am sure he still has it in him to be able to contribute. His experience will be an asset.

[spider-neil]

Rodgers' tactics may even suit Cole more than Lille's tactics did.

[Adeemo]

If he does indeed stay, he has to be seen as another option in the middle behind the frontman, in the hole if you like Maybe let him have that role in The Europa and League Cup, if he impresses then he can push for a place in the league starting line-up. He simply can't be used as a wide man in a Brendan Rodgers team, he loves raw pace and trickery.

[finnansounderrated]

He has done nothing which would warrant not giving him a go, but the flip side of that is that he has done nothing full stop.  On the fence.  Suppose thats why Rogers is the manager and Im not.

[spider-neil]

I suspect if someone offered to take him off our hands (even on free) we'd snatch their arm off, but that is very unlikely so we have to try and use him.

[Gazza-LFC]

Could be very useful in the earlier stages of the europa league, get rid if poss but wouldn't be the end of the world if we kept him.

[litliper]

If he was on "normal" wages then I don't think a lot of us would care about keeping him as back up or not. His wages could however become an obstacle when signing other players. THAT is a problem.

[joe ®]

Rodgers has often spoken about how much his style of play requires a lot of hard work from every player on the pitch. He's mentioned how achieving the sort of possession stats that Swansea achieved means that the ball has to be won back extremely quickly whenever it's lost, which means pressing high up the pitch as well as in our own half.

That doesn't sound like it would suit Joe Cole at all, with his rumoured smoking habit and the fact he's usually bent over with his hands on his hips puffing his cheeks out after half an hour of a game.

[joe ®]

I suspect if someone offered to take him off our hands (even on free) we'd snatch their arm off, but that is very unlikely so we have to try and use him.

Yup. If anyone was prepared to cover enough of that obscene wage he'd be off but obviously no one is. Big round of applause for the 'Fernando Torres of finance' on this one.

[MassDriver]

Rodgers has often spoken about how much his style of play requires a lot of hard work from every player on the pitch. He's mentioned how achieving the sort of possession stats that Swansea achieved means that the ball has to be won back extremely quickly whenever it's lost, which means pressing high up the pitch as well as in our own half.

That doesn't sound like it would suit Joe Cole at all, with his rumoured smoking habit and the fact he's usually bent over with his hands on his hips puffing his cheeks out after half an hour of a game.

That was last season. He's had one full season of football and you'd expect him to be a lot fitter than he was at the time.

[Fordy]

I suspect if someone offered to take him off our hands (even on free) we'd snatch their arm off

See i doubt that very much.

[Dirk18Kuyt]

I suspect if someone offered to take him off our hands (even on free) we'd snatch their arm off, but that is very unlikely so we have to try and use him.

Well 3 clubs were interested.

Doubt all of them offered crap wages/terms etc.

[scouse29]

See i doubt that very much.

Why? The chance to get him if the wage bill is a massive incentive. There was no fee paid for him so lets get rid.