Former England international Joe Cole announced last week that he is retiring from professional football.
And after the announcement, the 37-year-old has made a number of startling revelations.
Recently Joe Cole was asked as to who is the best player that the former Chelsea and West Ham man has played with to which everyone was expecting Joe Cole to name one of his former England teammates.
Cole has played alongside the likes of Steven Gerrard and John Terry at Stamford Bridge and also with greats such as Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard for the Three Lions.
But the winger chose to take a very different route.
Cole told Sky Sports: ‘You look at all the English boys – Gerrard, Frank [Lampard], JT [John Terry], Rooney, Rio [Ferdinand].
‘Also the foreign players like [Arjen] Robben and Hazard… I could go on forever. You realise you’re playing with geniuses.
‘If my life depended on it I would pick Hazard [as the best]. He was 19 when I played with him in France and even then he was just so talented.
‘He had everything. He’s just a great player. I think he’ll go on to win the Ballon d’Or, I really think he’s that good.’
Joe Cole played alongside a young Eden Hazard during his loan spell with Lille during the 2011-12 season.
And immediately after this season, Eden Hazard chose to join Chelsea in the Premier League – a club where has been ever since.
Immediately after Joe Cole’s retirement announcement, Eden Hazard had told the Chelsea website that Cole had a really big part in helping him decide which Premier League club to join.
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