Former Chelsea and England star, 42, comes out of retirement to play for 10TH TIER minnows in pre-season friendly

5 months ago 41

FORMER Chelsea star Joe Cole came out of retirement to play for a team in the 10th tier of English football.

The ex-England and Blues ace, 42, laced up his boots for a pre-season friendly outing with Belstone FC on Tuesday.

Joe Cole rolled back the years as he came out of retirement for play for Belstone FC[/caption]

The former Chelsea and England star is now a pundit on TV[/caption]

Cole, now a pundit for TNT Sports and ITV, was all smiles as he posed for a photo after the clash against Milton Keynes College Football Academy.

A tweet from Belstone read: “Joe Cole, @blundenm8 and the match officials after yesterday’s pre-season friendly.

“Thanks to @MKCollegeFooty for travelling down for the game. Good luck for the upcoming season.”

Three years ago, he starred for the Hertfordshire-based side in a crunch cup battle.

Cole, who won 56 England caps, played the first half and inspired the team to a 2-1 win.

He said afterwards: “I’ve always loved playing and a big thank you to Aaron and @belstonefc for letting me play again on Saturday.

“Good to dust the cobwebs off and my Sunday league team stood me in good fashion for this one.

“Can’t wait to play again, if you’ll have me and I’ll even remember my own boots next time.”

The match is sure to have brought back great memories for Cole.

He began his career at West Ham and scored 13 goals in 150 outings before joining Chelsea in 2004.

Cole netted 282 times in 39 games for the Blues as he won three Premier League titles and two FA Cups.

He then spent time with Liverpool and even went on loan to French side Lille before returning to West Ham.

Cole also played for Aston Villa and Coventry City before ending his career with American side Tampa Bay Rowdies in 2018.