Joe Cole

[nigel]

Imagine if we'd have the internet years ago. Post from 1980- Can't believe we sold fans favourite and prolific goal scorer last year Andy Gray, and now we've bought that journey man Peter Withe, sack Saunders.
Post from 1989- Can't believe we've bought that cripple from Man United Paul McGrath, past his best and will never be fit enough, sack Taylor.

Not having a go at you, cannock villa, but every single time there is a contentious signing, someone rolls that one out.

Well we're all pundits. If you go back through these pages there'll be posters heralding the signings of N'Zogbia and Ireland and slamming the spunking of £7million on some unknown Belgian kid. Time will tell with Cole as with every other signing whether it was a good move or not.

I didn't mean that we get things wrong, so much that those two signings get rolled out - the implication being that sometimes signings which look highly unlikely to work out, do work out very well.

Given that the first of them was 35 years ago, and the second 25 years ago, two examples in that sort of time frame renders it a pretty meaningless comparison.

It's all very well and good saying '...but every single time there is a contentious signing, someone rolls that one out.' paulie. And you are right.
But as long as people judge a player on his previous history, before he's even kicked a ball for us, this will always happen.
Joe Cole could turn out to be another Paul Merson, Philippe Senderos could be a Martin Lausen,  then again they might not.

[pauliewalnuts]

I'm hoping for rampant.

[Chris Smith]

It is noticeable that last season the complaint was 'no more of the young and hungry approach, we need proven PL experience'. We get that experience and all of a sudden 32 is past it.

[Whiney MacWhineface]

People keep bringing up comparisons to Merson.

Merson was already rejuvenated at Middlesborough when we bought him. The only shadow over Laursen was his injury record, not his form.

The last time Joe Cole was on his top form was over 5 years ago. He may turn out really useful, and I hope so because otherwise the cupboard looks a bit bare, but watching him play (on those odd occasions when he did) he was not much of anything. Not bad, but not great either.

[Villafirst]

It is noticeable that last season the complaint was 'no more of the young and hungry approach, we need proven PL experience'. We get that experience and all of a sudden 32 is past it.

I've no issues with Cole's age, just a big question mark on his fitness for a whole season. I hope it works out.

[manic-road]

I hope the Cole signing works out well, I won't be judging him before he has even had chance to kick a ball for us.

[Whiney MacWhineface]

And before anyone asks, yes I am suffering flashbacks from 1967. And none of the good bits.

[dave.woodhall]

People keep bringing up comparisons to Merson.

Merson was already rejuvenated at Middlesborough when we bought him. The only shadow over Laursen was his injury record, not his form.

The last time Joe Cole was on his top form was over 5 years ago. He may turn out really useful, and I hope so because otherwise the cupboard looks a bit bare, but watching him play (on those odd occasions when he did) he was not much of anything. Not bad, but not great either.

Merson wasn't rejuvenated at 'Boro. He didn't like them, they didn't like him.

[Dave]

I'm hoping the "re" word we see associated with Villa next year is "resurgent" and not "relegation"

I'm expecting it to be that we've just signed Neil Redfearn.

[Whiney MacWhineface]

But his form had been good. He got better under Gregory, better than we expected, but he'd still done the business at Boro.

[Steve R]

I'm hoping for rampant.

So am I. It's my birthday today.

[pauliewalnuts]

It is noticeable that last season the complaint was 'no more of the young and hungry approach, we need proven PL experience'. We get that experience and all of a sudden 32 is past it.

The complaint isn't just about his age, that's totally misleading, as I suspect you know, Chris.

It is that he hasn't managed to do much in the last several years.

Nobody would be moaning about Barry who is the same age. Why? Because he proved as recently as last season that he still had it.

People weren't just asking for "age" or "experience" last season - I'd have thought it was a given that any player with those attributes would still be able to offer something on the pitch.

[pauliewalnuts]

Imagine if we'd have the internet years ago. Post from 1980- Can't believe we sold fans favourite and prolific goal scorer last year Andy Gray, and now we've bought that journey man Peter Withe, sack Saunders.
Post from 1989- Can't believe we've bought that cripple from Man United Paul McGrath, past his best and will never be fit enough, sack Taylor.

Not having a go at you, cannock villa, but every single time there is a contentious signing, someone rolls that one out.

Well we're all pundits. If you go back through these pages there'll be posters heralding the signings of N'Zogbia and Ireland and slamming the spunking of £7million on some unknown Belgian kid. Time will tell with Cole as with every other signing whether it was a good move or not.

I didn't mean that we get things wrong, so much that those two signings get rolled out - the implication being that sometimes signings which look highly unlikely to work out, do work out very well.

Given that the first of them was 35 years ago, and the second 25 years ago, two examples in that sort of time frame renders it a pretty meaningless comparison.

It's all very well and good saying '...but every single time there is a contentious signing, someone rolls that one out.' paulie. And you are right.
But as long as people judge a player on his previous history, before he's even kicked a ball for us, this will always happen.
Joe Cole could turn out to be another Paul Merson, Philippe Senderos could be a Martin Lausen,  then again they might not.

Which was exactly my point.

Rolling out examples of players who did work out is of absolutely no relevance. They might work out, they might not.

[Allan C]

This could be a good signing  He was definitely a class act. But to use the fact that he didn't break into the West Ham team suggests that "Big Sam" knows a good player which he clearly dosnt

[Villa in Denmark]

People keep bringing up comparisons to Merson.

Merson was already rejuvenated at Middlesborough when we bought him. The only shadow over Laursen was his injury record, not his form.

The last time Joe Cole was on his top form was over 5 years ago. He may turn out really useful, and I hope so because otherwise the cupboard looks a bit bare, but watching him play (on those odd occasions when he did) he was not much of anything. Not bad, but not great either.

So a definite improvement on most of what our midfield served up last season then.