“Ashley is someone who has experience, but he hasn’t played for a while now”, stated Garde who was a player with Arsenal as Cole was emerging through the youth teams.
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Cole, 34, joined Roma in 2014 but has not featured in any of their matchday squads this season.
And after Jordan Amavi suffered a serious knee injury which has ruled him out for the campaign, Garde is keen to sign a new left-back.
“I’m already working on that with the club”, he added.
Cole has plenty of Premier League experience, having made nearly a combined 400 appearances for Chelsea, Arsenal and Crystal Palace. Of course, it’s tough because we need to win and we have struggled to win games.
He said: “He is a very good player who has great individual skill, but what I also like is that he is a real team player who fights for the team. For the moment, we have other games to play and to try to win, I am only focused completely on that”.
Rock-bottom Villa host title-chasing Arsenal on Sunday as Garde looks to pick up his first win since taking charge as manager last month.
And now Villa boss Remi Garde has warned the player that until he proves his fitness he will not find himself in the starting lineup.
The 20-year-old midfielder was overlooked for first-team duty against Watford and Southampton following a breach of club discipline.
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Garde confirmed on Thursday that Leandro Bacuna and Rudy Gestede are fit to play after coming off at St Mary’s Stadium, although there are doubts about the availability of Micah Richards (knee).
