Player #871 for Aston Villa, Joseph John Cole known as Joe Cole played as a midfielder for the club in Villa’s 2014-15 and 2015-16 Premier League campaigns, with the latter ending in Villa’s first relegation from the top tier in nearly 30 years. Joe made 16 appearances and scored 1 goal.

Joe was born in Paddington on 8 November 1981.

Paul Lambert had signed Joe from West Ham United on a free transfer in July 2014 in a total about turn on transfer policy. Gone were the lower league imports and in came an equally unfathomable approach - signing ageing, faltering and in some cases downright failed players with ‘Big 6’ club history but who had long ago discarded them.

In summary Cole, ex-Liverpool and Chelsea, arrived, got injured and left.

Indeed Joe arrived injured, which didn’t bode well, but he recovered to make his first team bow in the League Cup 2nd Round defeat to Leyton Orient on Wednesday, 27 August 2014 before injury struck again. Joe had to wait until Saturday, 18 October 2014 to make his Premier League debut for Villa in the 0-3 defeat at Everton after coming on as an 81’ substitute for Christian Benteke. Cole appeared as a substitute in the following match coming on after 70’ for Ashley Westwood in Villa’s 0-2 defeat at QPR.

With his first three appearances for the club ending in hapless defeats under Lambert there were few signs that Cole’s signing was a catalyst for the team, however after sitting out the next 3 fixtures, Lambert recalled Cole to the starting line up and in his first Premier League start for Villa he scored in the 1-1 draw at Burnley on Saturday, 29 November 2014, his only goal for the club. Cole’s next start in the following game ended in Villa’s first win in 10 games but yet again Joe succumbed to injury.

By the time Joe returned, Lambert’s reign was in its death throes and after five successive Premier League defeats in which Joe was involved in three, Lambert was gone.

Lambert’s successor Tim Sherwood preferred a younger first XI and Cole would have to wait until Saturday, 4 April 2015 to make his reappearance as a 77’ minute substitute for Andreas Weimann in the 1-3 loss at Manchester United with Cole providing the assist for Christian Benteke’s 80’ consolation strike.

Sherwood would name Cole in 7 successive squads, making 5 substitute appearances before being named on the bench for the 2015 FA Cup Final against Arsenal, Cole however remained on the bench as Villa lost convincingly.

2015-16 saw interim manager Sherwood surprisingly kept in post and with a major, though disjointed overhaul of the squad having taken place in the close season, it was clear that Cole’s playing time at Villa would be severely limited.

Although Cole was named in the squad for the first Premier League game of the season on Saturday, 8 August 2015 with Villa recording what would turn out to be a rare victory, he remained an unused substitute and would make his final appearance for Villa on Tuesday, 25 August 2015 in the 5-3 League Cup win over Notts County coming on as a substitute for Adama Traoré on 60’.

Cole would go on to make two further unused substitute appearances before moving on loan to Coventry City in October 2015 ahead of a permanent move on a free transfer aged 34 in January 2016.

Cole had played under Paul Lambert and Tim Sherwood.