OpinionManchester United great Andy Cole drives ‘life-saving’ law change after kidney transplant close call

Andy Cole was mentioned. I had doubts. I didn’t know him and he wasn’t renowned for dealing with media. This was 2008 and Cole had just stopped playing, but he was a big name and he’d been a great player. But when I made contact he agreed to meet on the condition that his fee could be given to a children’s hospital in Liverpool.

Cole was a revelation. He spoke for four hours after his life, from his father holding his ground in the miner’s strike, a Jamaican who’d suffer all kinds of abuse, to cutting through the Barcelona or Juventus defence as part of Manchester United’s treble winners. Cole scored 187 league goals and he’s still the third all-time scorer in the Premier League era after bursting onto the scene with Newcastle United. “He gets the ball, he scores a goal,” fans would sing, “Andy, Andy Cole.” Mostly associated with Man United, he even won over Manchester City fans with his hard work.

We kept in touch and I got to know him. He wasn’t arrogant at all, just a private family man who was loyal to his friends and wanted to be around people he trusted. We did a newspaper column together for years and I’ve never worked with a more reliable footballer. If he said he would call at eight, then he’d call at eight. Believe me, that’s not the norm.

Not every footballer deals with the transition from being a top-level footballer to not being one, but Cole did better than most.

“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my life since I stopped playing,” said the 46-year-old. “Of course you miss playing now and then, but I’ve travelled, I still work with Manchester United, I spent more time with my family and watched my kids grow up. I did all that after achieving my dream of being a professional footballer and playing at great football clubs.”