Larnell James Cole (born 9 March 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Warrington Town. Born in Manchester, Cole began his career with Manchester United, before joining Fulham in January 2014. He had loan spells at Milton Keynes Dons, Shrewsbury Town and Inverness Caledonian Thistle before moving to Tranmere Rovers in 2017.

Larnell Cole
Cole playing for Shrewsbury Town in 2016
Personal information
Full name Larnell James Cole[1]
Date of birth (1993-03-09) 9 March 1993 (age 31)[2]
Place of birth Manchester, England
Height 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Warrington Town
Youth career
2009–2011 Manchester United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2014 Manchester United 0 (0)
2014–2017 Fulham 1 (0)
2014Milton Keynes Dons (loan) 3 (0)
2015–2016Shrewsbury Town (loan) 29 (3)
2016–2017Inverness Caledonian Thistle (loan) 21 (1)
2017–2019 Tranmere Rovers 13 (2)
2020 FC United of Manchester 1 (0)
2020 Radcliffe Borough 5 (2)
2022–2023 Flint Town United 17 (2)
2023– Warrington Town 0 (0)
International career
2011 England U19 4 (0)
2013 England U20 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 February 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 09:30, 1 April 2019 (UTC)

Club career

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Manchester United

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Cole arrived as a schoolboy at Manchester United, before coming through the academy. A notable game came in 2011, when he scored a hat-trick against rivals Manchester City in a 6–1 victory in the Premier Academy League.[3] He then went on to make an impact in the club's run to the FA Youth Cup final, scoring a penalty and setting up teammate Ravel Morrison on the way to a 3–2 comeback against Liverpool in the quarter-final.[4]

Cole made his only senior appearance for Manchester United in the League Cup on 20 September 2011, coming as a substitute for Federico Macheda in the 77th minute of a 3–0 third round victory over rivals Leeds United at Elland Road.[5]

On 14 May 2013, Cole scored a hat-trick, including two penalties, against rivals Liverpool in the semi-final of the Under-21 Premier League as Manchester United won 3–0.[citation needed] Six days later, he scored two goals against Tottenham Hotspur in the Under-21 final at Old Trafford, as Manchester United won 3–2.[6]

Fulham

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On 31 January 2014, Cole joined fellow Premier League team Fulham for an undisclosed fee, along with Manchester United teammate Ryan Tunnicliffe, joining up with former Manchester United coach René Meulensteen.[7] He made his debut on 9 February in a 2–2 draw against his former club at Old Trafford, coming on as an 80th-minute substitute for William Kvist.[8]

Following Meulensteen's sacking as Fulham manager, Cole and Tunnicliffe were deemed surplus to requirements by Meulensteen's replacement, Felix Magath.[9] On 25 February 2014, Cole joined League One side Milton Keynes Dons on loan until the end of the 2013–14 season.[10] He made three appearances for the Dons, while his parent club ended the season with relegation to the Championship. Cole did not play a single competitive game in 2014–15.

On 1 September 2015, the last day of the 2015 summer transfer window, Cole returned to League One, with promoted club Shrewsbury Town, on loan until January 2016.[11] He made his debut four days later, replacing the injured James Wesolowski in the 16th minute of an eventual 2–1 win at Barnsley for the team's first league win of the season.[12] He then provided two assists for Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro in a 2–0 victory over Blackpool on 26 September for Shrewsbury's first home win of the season.[13] His first senior goal came in a 3–1 defeat to Walsall at the New Meadow on 1 December.[14] He later extended his loan deal until the end of the season,[15] making a total of 34 appearances in all competitions, scoring 3 goals.[16]

On 31 August 2016, Cole signed for Scottish Premiership club Inverness Caledonian Thistle on a loan deal until January 2017.[17] He scored his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw with Hamilton Academical on 10 December 2016.[18] In January 2017, the loan deal was extended until the end of the 2016–17 season.[19]

Tranmere Rovers

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On 27 October 2017, Cole signed for National League club Tranmere Rovers on a deal until January 2018.[20] Cole made his Tranmere debut the very next day, coming on as a substitute and scoring in a 4–2 home win against Halifax Town.[21] Four weeks later, Cole doubled his Rovers goals tally, scoring the opening goal in a 2–2 draw away to Macclesfield Town on 21 November.[22]

Cole extended his contract with Tranmere at the end of the 2017–18 season,[23] but after just over a year with the club, he was released in January 2019.[24]

F.C. United of Manchester

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Cole joined FC United of Manchester in February 2020.[25]

Flint Town United

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In June 2022 he joined Cymru Premier side Flint Town United.[26] He made his league debut for the club on 13 August.[27]

Warrington Town

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In February 2023, Cole signed for Northern Premier League Premier Division club Warrington Town.[28]

International career

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Cole was called up for the England under-19 friendly against the Netherlands in August 2011 and went on to make his debut as a substitute in the 0–0 draw on 1 September 2011.[29] On 28 May 2013, he was named in manager Peter Taylor's 21-man squad for the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup.[30] He made his debut on 16 June, in a 3–0 win in a warm-up game against Uruguay.[31]

Career statistics

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As of match played 13 May 2017[32]
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Manchester United 2011–12 Premier League 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
2012–13 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2013–14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Fulham 2013–14 Premier League 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
2014–15 Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2015–16 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2016–17 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Milton Keynes Dons (loan) 2013–14 League One 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Shrewsbury Town (loan) 2015–16 League One 29 3 4 0 0 0 1[a] 0 34 3
Inverness Caledonian Thistle (loan) 2016–17 Scottish Premiership 21 1 2 1 0 0 23 2
Career total 54 4 6 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 62 5
  1. ^ Appearance in Football League Trophy

References

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  1. ^ "Premier League clubs submit squad lists" (PDF). PremierLeague.com. Premier League. 2 February 2012. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
  2. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup Turkey 2013 List of Players: England" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 23 June 2013. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 June 2013.
  3. ^ "U18s: United 6 City 1". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 19 February 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  4. ^ "FAYC: Liverpool 2 United 3". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 13 March 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  5. ^ "Leeds 0–3 Man Utd". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 20 September 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  6. ^ Lee, Sam (21 May 2013). "Manchester United 3-2 Tottenham: Red Devils stage comeback to win U-21 title". Goal.com. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  7. ^ "United Duo Sign". fulhamfc.com. Fulham FC. 1 February 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  8. ^ Magowan, Alistair (9 February 2014). "Man Utd 2–2 Fulham". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  9. ^ Bailey, Graeme (25 February 2014). "Transfer News: Fulham new boy Larnell Cole heads to MK Dons". Sky Sports. BSkyB. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  10. ^ "Dons capture Cole". mkdons.com. Milton Keynes Dons FC. 25 February 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  11. ^ "Larnell Cole: Shrewsbury Town sign Fulham midfielder on loan". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 1 September 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  12. ^ "Barnsley 1–2 Shrewsbury". BBC Sport. 5 September 2015. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
  13. ^ "Shrewsbury 2–0 Blackpool". BBC Sport. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  14. ^ "Shrewsbury 1–3 Walsall". BBC Sport. 1 December 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  15. ^ "Fulham pair Jack Grimmer & Larnell Cole in Shrewsbury deals". BBC Sport. 5 January 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  16. ^ "Games played by Larnell Cole in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  17. ^ "Inverness Caley Thistle sign Brad McKay and Larnell Cole". BBC Sport. 31 August 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  18. ^ "Inverness CT 1–1 Hamilton". BBC. 10 December 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  19. ^ "Henri Anier: Inverness Caley Thistle sign Estonia striker". BBC Sport. 16 January 2017. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  20. ^ "Rovers Add Wingers". tranmererovers.co.uk. Tranmere Rovers FC. 27 October 2017. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  21. ^ "Tranmere Rovers 4-2 FC Halifax Town". BBC Sport. 28 October 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  22. ^ "Macclesfield Town 2-2 Tranmere Rovers". BBC Sport. 21 November 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  23. ^ "Cole Signs New Deal". tranmererovers.co.uk. 25 May 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  24. ^ "Larnell Cole departs TRFC". tranmererovers.co.uk. Tranmere Rovers FC. 14 January 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  25. ^ Gordon, James. "FC United Bring In Former Tranmere Midfielder". Northern Premier League. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  26. ^ Sheen, Nigel (21 June 2022). "Larnell Cole & Jean-Louis Akpa Akrpo sign for Silkmen". Flint Town United. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
  27. ^ "Match report: Fowler's Flint get off to a winning start". Flint Town United. 13 August 2022. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
  28. ^ "Larnell Cole joins the Yellows". www.warringtontownfc.co.uk. 17 February 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  29. ^ "Holland U18 0–0 England U18". TheFA.com. The Football Association. 1 September 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  30. ^ "Final squad named". TheFA.com. 28 May 2013. Archived from the original on 17 December 2013. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  31. ^ "Training win for Three Lions". TheFA.com. The Football Association. 16 June 2013. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  32. ^ Larnell Cole at Soccerway. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
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