WHZ View: Carlton Cole deserving of legend status at West Ham
What does it take for a player to be labelled a club legend at West Ham?
Score bags of goals? Have an excellent work rate? Loyalty? Drop your wages after a relegation to stay and fight for the shirt?
Carlton Cole fits all of the above criteria.
The former England international made 293 appearances for the Hammers between the years of 2006-2015, scoring 68 goals in all competitions.
Today, Cole is the joint-third highest goalscorer for West Ham in the top-flight. He’s also made the second-most appearances with 216.
Cole bagged 41 times in the top-flight, a number Michail Antonio equalled with his brace against West Brom in January. Both men are just six shy of the icon, Paolo Di Canio.
As Antonio is about to go ahead of him as our third highest Premier League goalscorer, West Ham Zone chose to reflect on his best times in claret and blue.
The first
Cole’s first goal came on his debut at Upton Park, on the opening day of the 2006/07 season. With the Hammers winning 2-1 at home to Charlton, Cole was introduced and scored with his second touch, his first being to chest it down.
His appearances were limited that year with the arrival of Alan Curbishley. Marlon Harewood, Bobby Zamora and a man by the name of Carlos Tevez (a story for another time) were ahead of him in the manager’s eyes.
Cole scored just three times all season. He refused a move to Derby in January to stay and fight for his place, we’re very glad he did.
Loyalty personified
With the Hammers relegated under a dark cloud in 2010, Cole received offers from a host of Premier League clubs to stay in the top-flight. He’d famously been linked with Liverpool the season before, but Stoke came knocking in the summer.
Cole actually stayed and led us back to the Premier League through the playoffs. That season, he scored fourteen times in the Championship, and once more in the final to see us promoted.
After the win at Wembley, Cole revealed that he’d actually taken a massive 50% pay cut to stay with us and help the promotion push.
Wondergoal at Wigan
Cole scored arguably his best goal in claret and blue at the formerly known JJB Stadium.
One-touch build-up from Scott Parker, Mark Noble and David Di Michelle was topped off by a first-time finish from the number 9. He swept the ball into the corner of the Wigan net from 20 yards.
It was a shame that there were only 14,169 people in the ground to witness it. Cole was then sent off three minutes later. As he once said to whufc.com: “You never knew what you were gonna get, life is like a box of chocolates as they say.”
It certainly is, Carlton. Never change.
In other West Ham news, are we set to make this loan singing a permanent one?