Ashley Cole has refused to discuss his fallout with Rio Ferdinand on his return to England for Roma’s Champion’s league clash with Manchester City on Tuesday night.
In his autobiography, Ferdinand claimed that he felt betrayed that Cole defended John Terry in court over allegations of racially abusing his brother Anton, and did not reachout to him to explain his decision.
Asked what he felt about his former England teammate’s comments at the pre-match press conference, Cole snapped: ‘I’m here to talk about football not that.’
Cole left Stamford Bridge after eight years for Serie A side Roma. His former teammate Frank Lampard moved to City and the two are poised to face each other on Tuesday night.
‘It’s good to see Joe Hart and Lamps – I never expected to play against him,’ said Cole. ‘It will be good to see him if we’re both selected.
‘I think everyone knows what Lampard brings to every team. It’s another experienced player for City and he brings goals. He scored one against Chelsea. He probably didn’t like that but he’s paid to do a job. It was probably a bit disappointing for him to do that against Chelsea.’
Asked if Chelsea were wrong to offload them both, he replied: ‘I don’t think Chelsea was wrong. A decision was made and I’m fine with it. I had eight great years there and I still speak to the staff and players.
‘I’m not playing that well (at Roma). I won’t get carried away. I need more games. I’m enjoying my football and hopefully I can emulate what I achieved at Arsenal and Chelsea.’
City lost their opening Group E tie to Bayern Munich while Roma – who have won all five of their Serie A games this season – thrashed CSKA Moscow 5-1.
And Cole believes that will heap further pressure on the Premier League champions to avoid another damaging defeat.
‘Of course it will make it more difficult for them to qualify,’ he added. ‘It will be a tough game. It will make it hard for them to catch up certainly and put us top of the group.
‘There is pressure on them. They have big players and I know some of them are very hungry – Hart and Milner and Lamps will always want to keep on winning – but there’s less pressure on us.
‘I think everyone knows how good City are now. They have been champions twice. They have Toure, Dzeko, Aguero, Hart and then they sign Lampard. These players are known worldwide because they win things, they have won the Premier League and now they will be aiming to win the Champions League as well
‘They have great players all over the pitch. We know a lot of their players and how good they are. We have to focus on ourselves and we have good players, too. They know it will be a tough game and though we are the underdogs we will give it everything and be ready for the game.’
‘We know they’ve got a big strong squad with a lot of matchwinners. It’s a new experience for some of our players but we are confident that we can challenge the top teams, come to City, play well and maybe don’t lose the game – that’s the main thing.’
On life in Rome, Cole added: ‘I’m loving Italy, to be honest. Of course it’s different to the Premier League. You are up against different players, most of them have very good technique and the Premier League is fast and furious. Serie A is slower, though we like to attack and play fast.
‘The manager is always on us to go forward and play. The football is different but I’m getting used to now and enjoying playing Italian football. I loved playing in the Premier League but this is something different for me now.’
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