Campbell keen to emulate Cole

Youngster idolised former England international

By Chris Burton   Last updated: 20th November 2008   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Campbell keen to emulate Cole

Campbell: Ambitious

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Fraizer Campbell is hoping to follow in the goal-laden footsteps of his boyhood idol Andy Cole.

The England U21 international is currently on a season-long loan at Tottenham, but Cole's former employers Manchester United still hold his registration.

Having joined the Red Devils as a teenager, Campbell admits that he looked up to those who provided the attacking threat in Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

Cole was one of those who helped United claim a clutch of silverware during a glittering period in the club's history, helping him to catch the eye of an impressionable Campbell.

While the 21-year-old has some way to go before he can claim to have emulated the achievements of his hero, the youngster is nothing if not ambitious.

Advice

"Andy was there when I first went to United and I was a bit awestruck at first, but it was great," said Campbell.

"I probably model myself on him a little because I watched him such a lot.

"I always thought, I want to be Andy Cole today, at school and stuff like that which never did me any harm. When I was younger I didn't used to support a team, I used to just support Andy Cole. He was the person I watched every week.

"He was really helpful to me. I even chat to him nowadays and he gives me tips on how to develop my game. He's been a mentor to me.

"He's given me advice on just about everything - his experiences in the game, what he did in training, what he did out of training. Just life advice really."