Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Lille Hope To Keep Cole

Lille boss Rudi Garcia has expressed his desire to keep Joe Cole at the club beyond the end of his loan spell.

Cole joined the French champions from Liverpool over the summer on a season-long deal, and has settled in quickly with a series of impressive performances.

Kenny Dalglish stated last month that he had not heard anything from Lille about the possibility of turning Cole's move into a permanent arrangement, but the midfielder has repeatedly spoken about how much he is loving his European adventure.

Garcia has also enjoyed working with Cole and has made it clear he would like the former England international to stay.

"Of course I would like to keep Joe Cole at the club next season," said Garcia. "He's not just a very talented player, but also a man of many qualities.

"He shares the values of Lille and northern France. He is a humble guy, and honest and approachable despite his fantastic CV as a player.

"His team-mates really appreciate him. He has the virtue of being a hard worker - he goes flat out all the time.

"I sometimes have to tell him during training to take his foot off the gas and save some energy. He is a pleasure to coach."

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