Andy Cole - premier league hall of famer

redshaw

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Great player that won the lot.

He came here and evolved as a player adding a lot to his game to help us.
 

Bobski

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Great player, ended up an excellent all round striker and the template for how I judge a lot of forwards. Great body shape for the role, quick, brave, agile and super quick feet. Played for the team first and was much more creative than most people remember, plus he has a special range of goals, headers, volleys, overhead kicks, dribbles, chips, scored every goal, and his movement was incredible. Missed chances but was always a huge threat.

On another note Giggs still being absent from this is ludicrous. What is the justification? Moral reasons when you have a number of other known adulterers in there?
 

whitbyviking

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Cole was from an era of peak transfers, didn't seem to be any sagas and a lot of them were an unexpected surprise. I had a paper round and used to love reading the transfer news on the morning back pages.
 

CallyRed

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Cole was from an era of peak transfers, didn't seem to be any sagas and a lot of them were an unexpected surprise. I had a paper round and used to love reading the transfer news on the morning back pages.
Remember coming home from school and hearing about the Cole transfer, before the days of transfer windows, was a great day.
Though the best moment was Kevin Keegan trying to convince the Newcastle fans they got the better deal with Keith Gillespie arriving.
 

jamesblonde

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Shearer was clearly better. He could score such a variety of goals, big game player for England, and also played a good chunk of his team at a middling -barring a season or two- Newcastle. Cole was great and I'm a massive fan, but having Shearer at United in the 90s would've taken us to another level.
Totally. Cole was better than what we had before, but not top class. We could have won in Europe a couple more times with Shearer. It was clear when Ruud came what a top striker did to a team - pity we were on our way downhiill when he arrived.
 

UTD_Since_1978

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EPL HOF, ok, 187 goals is impressive.

Had an awesome season at Newcastle being joining Man Utd.

But for me personally, he will go down as one of my least fave UTD players due to the fact he failed time & time again to score in the important games (apart from the Spurs 99 game which helped win the treble).

Cup QFs, SFs & Finals he was found wanting, thankfully football is a team game so others had to step up to the plate to help UTD win trophies.

94-95 final game of the season had to beat WHU, Cantona was banned, McClair managed to score whilst Cole failed, enough said.
 

black country red

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EPL HOF, ok, 187 goals is impressive.

Had an awesome season at Newcastle being joining Man Utd.

But for me personally, he will go down as one of my least fave UTD players due to the fact he failed time & time again to score in the important games (apart from the Spurs 99 game which helped win the treble).

Cup QFs, SFs & Finals he was found wanting, thankfully football is a team game so others had to step up to the plate to help UTD win trophies.

94-95 final game of the season had to beat WHU, Cantona was banned, McClair managed to score whilst Cole failed, enough said.
He scored in the champions league semi final 1999
 

Rasmus_9

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EPL HOF, ok, 187 goals is impressive.

Had an awesome season at Newcastle being joining Man Utd.

But for me personally, he will go down as one of my least fave UTD players due to the fact he failed time & time again to score in the important games (apart from the Spurs 99 game which helped win the treble).

Cup QFs, SFs & Finals he was found wanting, thankfully football is a team game so others had to step up to the plate to help UTD win trophies.

94-95 final game of the season had to beat WHU, Cantona was banned, McClair managed to score whilst Cole failed, enough said.
He scored two of the most monumental goals in our history! Guaranteed us a place in the final in 99 and won us the league against Spurs too
 

Tom Van Persie

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EPL HOF, ok, 187 goals is impressive.

Had an awesome season at Newcastle being joining Man Utd.

But for me personally, he will go down as one of my least fave UTD players due to the fact he failed time & time again to score in the important games (apart from the Spurs 99 game which helped win the treble).

Cup QFs, SFs & Finals he was found wanting,
thankfully football is a team game so others had to step up to the plate to help UTD win trophies.

94-95 final game of the season had to beat WHU, Cantona was banned, McClair managed to score whilst Cole failed, enough said.
Bullshit. He scored in Turin to send us to the final. Full speed ahead Barcelona.
 

Jev

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Didn’t know he got 34 Premier League goals in one season (42 games but still) with no penalties. That’s insane.

To those who watched him back then, would you say he had a slightly underwhelming career after that start? I assume he must have been one of the highest-rated young strikers ever after that season?
 

next_number_seven

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Didn’t know he got 34 Premier League goals in one season (42 games but still) with no penalties. That’s insane.

To those who watched him back then, would you say he had a slightly underwhelming career after that start? I assume he must have been one of the highest-rated young strikers ever after that season?
I remember finding him frustrating missing chances.
It's difficult to judge him properly because the hard part is getting the chances.
 

youngrell

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Didn’t know he got 34 Premier League goals in one season (42 games but still) with no penalties. That’s insane.

To those who watched him back then, would you say he had a slightly underwhelming career after that start? I assume he must have been one of the highest-rated young strikers ever after that season?
He became a much better, all round payer after that. At Newcastle he was a scoring machine, had a very good partnership with Beardsely but scoring was his sole purpose. Early days at United were tough for him but once he grew into the role he was fantastic.
 

Patchbeard

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Didn’t know he got 34 Premier League goals in one season (42 games but still) with no penalties. That’s insane.

To those who watched him back then, would you say he had a slightly underwhelming career after that start? I assume he must have been one of the highest-rated young strikers ever after that season?
I remember finding him frustrating missing chances.
It's difficult to judge him properly because the hard part is getting the chances.
Yeah not being old enough to remember him live at Newcastle my memory of him at Utd was being lively but missing as much as he scored, and then wondering how on earth he scored 34 in a season for Newcastle! Then the season with Yorke elevated my opinion of him due to how creative he was that season.

Rewatching any highlights of him now he was better technically than I realised as a youngster.
 

UTD_Since_1978

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Bullshit. He scored in Turin to send us to the final. Full speed ahead Barcelona.
You aware that;

1. It was 2-2 with a few minutes to go when he scored & UTD were going through on the away goal rule?

and

2. It was mostly great play by Yorkie leaving cole an easy tap-in?
 

Tom Van Persie

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You aware that;

1. It was 2-2 with a few minutes to go when he scored & UTD were going through on the away goal rule?

and

2. It was mostly great play by Yorkie leaving cole an easy tap-in?
Right so if Juventus would've scored they would be going through. Cole's goal secured our place in the final.
 

Trequarista10

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Definitely underrated.

Whether he was as good as Shearer or others, its subjective. But his record speaks for itself. He was in the top bracket but barely gets a mention, and even some United fans dismiss his achievements.

Someone I won't justify to quote insinuated Cole wasn't very good because SAF signed RVN. Well, Cole was 30 when we signed RVN, and we were still alternating between 442 and 4411/451, with Cole and RvN starting together at times, but Cole wanted to be first choice. Cole could have stayed as a squad player which is still quite an accomplishment for a 30+ year old, for the side dominating English football, and a player for who pace was one of his major assets. His overall game improved a ton at United. Perhaps not quite as clinical as some of the top strikers of his era but he also created goals out of nothing for himself and others.
 

FujiVice

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But for me personally, he will go down as one of my least fave UTD players due to the fact he failed time & time again to score in the important games (apart from the Spurs 99 game which helped win the treble).
son had to beat WHU, Cantona was banned, McClair managed to score whilst Cole failed, enough said.
OK. Scored the winner late against Coventry to keep us in the race in 95. Scored against Southampton to take us to the final day. Scored against Chelsea in the FA Cup semi. Scored against Newcastle at Old Trafford in a must win game in December. Scored on the final day of the season against Boro. Scored against Arsenal at Highbury in 97. Scored against Liverpool at Anfield to chinch the title. Scored against Liverpool at Anfield again the following year. Was our leading goalscorer in Europe before Van Nistelrooy turned up, scoring against the likes of Barcelona and Juventus. And that's just the ones I remember. All he did was score important goals. What an absolute bollocks suggestion.

Also, McClair was a natural goalscorer. Not exactly anything to be ashamed of.
 

Annihilate Now!

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You aware that;

1. It was 2-2 with a few minutes to go when he scored & UTD were going through on the away goal rule?

and

2. It was mostly great play by Yorkie leaving cole an easy tap-in?
So by number 2 should you not be giving Cole credit for the pinpoint cross to Yorke for the second?

He was really good in that second leg, like pretty much everyone was
 

UTD_Since_1978

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OK. Scored the winner late against Coventry to keep us in the race in 95. Scored against Southampton to take us to the final day. Scored against Chelsea in the FA Cup semi. Scored against Newcastle at Old Trafford in a must win game in December. Scored on the final day of the season against Boro. Scored against Arsenal at Highbury in 97. Scored against Liverpool at Anfield to chinch the title. Scored against Liverpool at Anfield again the following year. Was our leading goalscorer in Europe before Van Nistelrooy turned up, scoring against the likes of Barcelona and Juventus. And that's just the ones I remember. All he did was score important goals. What an absolute bollocks suggestion.

Also, McClair was a natural goalscorer. Not exactly anything to be ashamed of.
That post is clutching at straws big time, I suggest you totally analyse UTD's QF, SF & Cup Final games & you'll see the true extent of him blowing it in the really big games, 95-96 is a prime example when Cole failed & it was Cantona that was producing the important goals time & time again apart from 1 goal, FA Cup SF equaliser vs Chelsea & even then it was up to Becks to provide the all important winner.
 

FujiVice

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That post is clutching at straws big time, I suggest you totally analyse UTD's QF, SF & Cup Final games & you'll see the true extent of him blowing it in the really big games, 95-96 is a prime example when Cole failed & it was Cantona that was producing the important goals time & time again apart from 1 goal, FA Cup SF equaliser vs Chelsea & even then it was up to Becks to provide the all important winner.
Clutching at straws = giving examples of what big games actually are.