Ashley Cole Named 3 English Wingers & Cristiano Ronaldo as Toughest Opponents

 Ashley Cole is one of the greatest defenders English football has ever produced. In fact, in the entire history of the sport, there have been few better left-backs.

Starting out at Arsenal, the fullback quickly established himself as an elite talent and would win two Premier League titles and three FA Cups, before completing a controversial move to Chelsea. In West London, more honours would follow, including the 2012 Champions League.

He'd also be one of a small number of players to get 100 caps for England, picking up 107 (which is the sixth highest of all time and only one short of World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore). As one of the best defenders of a generation, most attackers had a tough time when coming up against Cole. That said, he has admitted there were a few wingers who used to cause him trouble.

Cole Had Great 'Battles' With Cristiano Ronaldo

"He had everything"

Speaking to the Mirror in 2024, Cole named four of his toughest opponents. The first name should come as no surprise, as he admitted Cristiano Ronaldo was number one:

"The battles I had with Cristiano Ronaldo are always ones that stay in people's minds."

Speaking in more detail in a separate interview, he expanded on his thoughts: "Over the years, Cristiano Ronaldo and I had some mighty battles and we have a mutual respect for each other. He came to the Premier League as a little bit of an unknown, but he soon understood what it took to be a top player. He was willing to learn and adapt. He wanted to be the best player in the world and became a machine.

He had everything. He could dribble, he could sprint behind, he could leap and jump and head a ball, he could go inside, he could go outside. So I say he always gave me nightmares, but you try to work each other out and we got the best of each other at times. Whenever I hear his name or see his face, I always think of when he made me do the splits! [in 2003/04, Ronaldo’s first Premier League season]"

Ronaldo holds Cole in just as high esteem. Indeed, he singled the Englishman out as his toughest ever opponent, explaining: "Over the years I had some great battles with Ashley Cole, he does not give you a second to breathe. He was such a tenacious player when he was at his peak, quick, tough in the tackle. You knew it would never be an easy game."

Cole Also Praised Aaron Lennon, Theo Walcott, and Raheem Sterling

"Always gave me a tough time"

After Ronaldo, he then went on to pick three English wingers, with some of the names coming as a bit of a surprise. He explained:

"I've had the privilege to play against top, top players: Aaron Lennon always gave me a tough time, Theo Walcott, Raheem Sterling. So yeah, lucky to put my wits against these top players. But the main one, I would have to say, is Cristiano."

All three men had distinguished Premier League careers, but not many would have guessed Aaron Lennon to be among Cole's toughest opponents. However, as a true speed demon, he evidently caused the left-back trouble whenever they met.

The same can be said of Theo Walcott, who shone at a high level for a number of years but perhaps never quite reached the heights that were expected of him when he first burst onto the scene as a youngster. Of the three, Raheem Sterling is the only one to get his hands on a Premier League title, lifting all four with Manchester City.

However, they are viewed in this day and age, on their day, all three had the quality to decide even the tightest matches. And if a legend like Cole claims they were tough to play against, it would be foolish to think otherwise.