The 2004/05 Premier League marked a before and after for Chelsea. With the arrival of Roman Abramovich and the leadership of Jose Mourinho, the London club reinvented itself and won its first title in the modern era of English football. Among the protagonists of that feat was Joe Cole, a creative midfielder who, in addition to leaving his mark on the pitch, starred in one of the most remembered anecdotes from the team's celebrations: a moment of euphoria that could have had a tragic ending.

Joe Cole arrived at Chelsea in 2003 from West Ham United. His arrival was part of the ambitious overhaul driven by Abramovich, who sought to transform the club into a European power.

Cole was one of the first signings of that new era, and his talent soon shone. He shared a locker room with figures like Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, and John Terry, under the command of Mourinho, who took over as manager in 2004.

The 2004/05 season was historic for Chelsea. The team delivered a crushing campaign, clinching the Premier League title after defeating Bolton. The squad finished twelve points above its classic rival, and closest challenger, Arsenal, consolidating a supremacy that would last for several years.

For Cole, that championship represented the crowning of a dream and the beginning of a golden cycle in his career.

The triumph brought with it massive celebrations. The squad boarded an open-top bus to tour the streets of London and share the victory with the fans. In that context, Joe Cole experienced an episode as hilarious as it was dangerous, which he himself recounted years later in an interview.

"We won the Premier League with a victory at Bolton, and I almost fell off the roof of the bus during the celebrations," recalled Cole. The emotion of the moment, combined with alcohol consumption and collective euphoria. "I was so excited that I opened the sunroof so I could climb on top. I started spraying champagne over the crowd of Chelsea fans, and suddenly I slipped. I literally was hanging on like Indiana Jones. I thought, 'I better get back inside the bus,'" the former footballer explained.

The account perfectly captures the atmosphere of those days: overflowing with joy, Cole nearly fell off the bus during the parade, a situation that could have ended in tragedy. His confession, laced with British humor, reveals the human side of the protagonists, who, amid the glory, were not exempt from risks and excesses.

Cole himself added another colorful detail about his relationship with Drogba: "We always had a joke during trophy presentations: when we won the Carling Cup together, we both ran with the trophy and the others said, 'Share it!' From then on, every time we won a title, we did the same thing. It became our tradition."

The episode remained just an anecdote, but it illustrates the unique climate Chelsea lived through in those years. Cole and Drogba formed a duo remembered not only for their sporting achievements but also for the camaraderie and jokes they shared in each triumph. The sequence of the Ivorian running with the Champions League trophy in 2012 is seen as a nod to that custom started with Cole.

On a sporting level, Joe Cole's legacy at Chelsea is undeniable. He won the Premier League three times (2004/05, 2005/06, and 2009/10), lifted the FA Cup and the Carling Cup, and was part of the most successful cycle in the institution's history. In total, he played 143 games alongside Drogba, during which they racked up 88 victories and 15 goals.

After his time at Chelsea, Cole continued his career at Liverpool, returned to West Ham United, and went through Lille in France, before closing his career at Aston Villa, Coventry City, and the Tampa Bay Rowdies. With the England national team, he earned 56 caps and scored 10 goals, including one at the World Cup.

Currently retired from professional activity, Cole works as a television commentator, where he remains linked to football and shares his view from the stands, away from the pitch.

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