Joe Cole has called time on his professional career. In a country that always hypes the next big thing, Cole epitomised the desire for a better way of playing the beautiful game.
A potential case of a player who was born in the wrong era, Cole was as a creative midfielder in the days when 4-4-2 was pretty much the only formation. You either found a way to fit in or you struggled.
Even when the Paddington-born prodigy was just 15, West Ham paraded the teenager at Upton Park during half-time of a league match against Chelsea to celebrate the prospect signing his first professional contract. The stadium announcer declared: "You can tell your grandchildren you were here when Joe Cole signed."
While his career may have never reached the lofty potential it once possessed, the 5 foot 7 genius retires after 716 professional games, 104 goals and 56 caps for his country spanning three World Cups.
In honour of Cole hanging up his boots, we look at the moments that defined his career.
The 1998-99 season first saw Cole pull on the claret and blue of West Ham United, instantly taking a shining to the bigger stage and displaying his potential.
But before the boy became a man at Upton Park, he was dazzling the youth ranks. His FA Youth Cup Final display against Coventry epitomised everything he had to offer - determination, creativity, a touch of flair and a belief in himself that he could do the job.
By the age of 21, Cole had become a regular senior player for his childhood club and Glenn Roeder seemingly saw a maturity far beyond his age.
But with the captain’s armband adorning the Englishman, despite his best efforts West Ham were relegated at the end of the 2002-03 season.
It was a real low point for the Hammers and the young midfielder, one that obliged him to consider the next step of his career.
From relegation with the Hammers to joining the early stages of a project that would change the face of the English game, Claudio Ranieri brought the midfielder to Stamford Bridge and dubbed Cole the Blues’ next Zola.
His comments were a little off the mark however, however, and the team’s greater good took precedence as Cole became a utility option to plug the holes across midfield that had fellow Hammers academy product Frank Lampard as it's shining star.
Out went Ranieri and in came one of football’s greatest tacticians in Jose Mourinho. Finally, it seemed, Cole would have his moment in the spotlight doing what he does best.
Unfortunately not. The once-hyped teenager was finding out the hard way that a luxurious creative midfielder was not necessarily what his manager wanted at the time and the wing became his predominant role.
Mourinho preferred more industrious names in the middle of the park, such as Claude Makelele and Tiago.
Mourinho said in the opening months of the 2004/05 season: “[Cole] has two faces – one beautiful and one I don’t like. He must keep one and change the other one.”
The Portuguese was saying that he wanted more from his man, taking away the attacking focus and instilling a greater defensive discipline, despite scoring a winner against Liverpool by flicking in a shot from a Lampard free kick.
But Cole ended the season with nine goals in 46 appearances, only 12 of those coming from the bench, and appeared to have won over his biggest critic in Mourinho.
In his third season at Stamford Bridge, Cole's defining moment came against Manchester United as the final day neared and the title was in sight.
In an April clash that eventually ended 3-0, Cole received the ball with his back to goal and three United defenders surrounding him just outside the box, yet a quick turn and a burst of pace into the gaping hole he created left the Englishman one-on-one.
He duly riffled home and was subsequently placed in the PFA Team of the Year.
Coming off Premier League success with Chelsea, the 2006 World Cup finals in Germany were by far Cole’s greatest days as an England international. Nothing sings his praises of that summer more than his screamer against Sweden, which remains an iconic World Cup goal for the Three Lions.
That tournament was arguably the country’s best chance of success with England’s supposed golden generation, and the then-Chelsea midfielder took to the stage like few others in the squad. He also provided an assist for Steven Gerrard against Sweden to clinch the Man of the Match award.
Throughout Cole’s career, injuries played a part at some stage or another but none were more prominent than the cruciate ligament rupture he sustained during the 2008-09 season that kept him on the sidelines for the best part of a year - 249 days.
Cole returned for the following season but after sitting out 37 games for the Blues his future at the club was clearly over and he left as a free agent in the summer.
A move to Merseyside was meant to act as a restart to Cole’s career and finally allow the England international to fulfil his potential as a creative midfielder.
That was not to be as a tricky start to life - a red card on his debut against Arsenal and missing a penalty in his next game - left Cole fighting to get things back on track. He ultimately failed to do so in a disappointing spell with Liverpool.
After being unable to establish his talent at Anfield, Cole was off again as he moved to France for a loan spell at Lille. He was handed a chance to play in his best position and worked under a manager in Rudi Garcia that appreciated expressive football.
At a time when the likes of Eden Hazard and Dimitri Payet were staring in France, Cole looked as comfortable as he ever did.He ended that season with nine goals and six assists to his name.
Cole returned to boyhood club West Ham in 2012, but the homecoming ultimately proved to be the first stage of the end of his career.
Playing under Big Sam was always going to be a challenge considering Allardyce's focus on attritional football and soon Cole slipped down the footballing pyramid, after making 37 appearances during his second stint with the Hammers.
He served spells with Aston Villa, Coventry and the Tampa Bay Rowdies before retiring on Tuesday, November 13th 2018.
Take a bow Joe.