Ashley Cole said he felt betrayed by Arsenal, who made no attempt to keep him, but refused to allow an easy transfer to Chelsea. "I feel betrayed and let down by a club I've given my heart and soul to," Cole said in his new book, My Defence. Cole secured a transfer to Chelsea just before the transfer deadline, and after a seemingly endless saga of price haggling between Chelsea and the club Cole spent his youth at. Since leaving the Gunners, Cole has released a book about the events leading to his departure which has been serialized by The Times. In the book he exposes the second class treatment he received in comparison to Arsenal's adoration of Henry Thierry. "The club made Thierry feel wanted and special, wooing him, wining and dining him, speaking in public about how much they want him to stay, going on a deliberate charm offensive," the England full-back said.
He wanted to feel as important as Henry "But me? I didn't have one dinner, one meeting or one phone call from anyone. That's not sour grapes, it's just a sad truth. The truth is that the Gunners had done nothing all season to hold on to me." Cole said that the constant praise for Henry made the club's lack of appreciation for him even more obvious. “It felt to me that Arsenal had done nothing to keep me last season, and now it seemed obstacles were piling up at the exit door,” Cole said. “I felt like a bargaining chip with the stakes too high. Their behavior puzzled me. It felt like Arsenal were toying with Chelsea, toying with my future." For Cole, he truly realized his relationship with the club had deteriorated when after he had agreed on a weekly salary of 60,000 pounds with Arsenal vice chairman David Dein, the board chose to bargain over a 5,000 pound salary reduction. "My love for Arsenal was soured by what I see as neglect and resentment," Cole said. "I feel betrayed and let down by a club I've given my heart and soul to." Cole made his Chelsea debut as a substitute in Saturday's 2-1 win over Charlton Athletic.
