Ex-England star Joe Cole reckons he is 'banned' from Cardiff after scoring against Wales in a crucial World Cup qualifier.
The former West Ham, Chelsea and Liverpool man grabbed the only goal of the game when John Toshack's Wales lost a Millennium Stadium clash to an England side featuring the likes of David Beckham, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney.
Cole's second-half winner in the September 2005 game helped move England top of their qualifying group for the 2006 World Cup, while Wales would go on to finish fifth behind Poland, Austria and Northern Ireland.
However, Cole reveals in a column he writes for the Telegraph how that strike had ramifications. Cole, who won 56 caps for his country, says that he was told to leave a Cardiff nightclub after returning to the capital to watch an Oasis concert.
He says he was reminded of what happened as he sat by the Wales fans to watch the Three Lions dump Rob Page's side out of the World Cup on Tuesday night.
Cole, who is working as an ITV pundit during the tournament, wrote: "Watching the game alongside the Wales fans reminded me of a moment in my career about a year after I scored the winner for England in a World Cup qualifier in Cardiff in 2005.
"I was back in Cardiff for an Oasis concert and after that we went out, and eventually we ended up in a club. I was having a great time when four local lads came over and said – very politely I should say but very insistently – that I had to leave the club. They mentioned the goal against Wales.
"I was not about to argue. Since then I have always wondered: am I still banned from Cardiff?"
Cole, who also represented Aston Villa, Coventry City, Lille and Tampa Bay Rowdies during his 20-year-career, said he was "glad to report that no-one recognised me" after taking his seat near to the Red Wall on Tuesday night, having travelled to the stadium after working on coverage of the Netherlands against Qatar earlier that day.
While he didn't let his experience in Cardiff hold him back from talking up England's "superb" performance, the man who played in three World Cups also defended some Welsh players who had come under fire for their performances.
"For some of the Wales players, it was the last hurrah on the international stage and the criticism from their fans was that they never turned up," said Cole. "I would say otherwise – that all their energy was used up chasing England in that first half.
"You could see the Wales players’ spirit breaking. The lactic acid would have been pumping in their legs. They stayed in the game until half-time and then after the break they wilted. It could have been many more than the three goals England scored."
Wales boss Rob Page has claimed his players were 'exceptional, outstanding, excellent' during that first half, post-match remarks which have baffled many fans who believed the tactics were too cautious in a must-win match.
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