There are much more incontrovertible statistics by which Cole should be judged. In the history of the Premiership, only Alan Shearer has scored more goals (260 to Cole's 187). Even more tellingly for a player whose approach play never got any credit, never mind as much as it deserved, only Ryan Giggs and Dennis Bergkamp have more assists from open play than Cole's 127. And if you exclude penalties (Shearer 56, Cole 1), Cole's goals-per-Premiership-games ratio is actually higher than Shearer's. Longevity and outstanding service from Giggs and co can qualify these statistics, but they cannot discredit them.
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