Fans of West Ham United and Chelsea don’t need much of an excuse to have a pop at one another.
There is no love lost between the London rivals as evidenced by the trouble which marred West Ham’s 2-1 win over the Blues in the EFL Cup earlier this season and for anyone trawling through Twitter of a weekend.
While the Blues are seemingly on the march towards another Premier League title, West Ham have put their struggles this season behind them with five wins from their last seven matches pushing them into the top 10.
Slaven Bilic’s side won 3-1 away at Middlesbrough on Saturday before Antonio Conte’s side beat Hull City 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
But it was a flag unfurled at the Bridge which had Hammers fans – and even some Chelsea supporters – puzzled.
West Ham United’s Joe Cole
The new flag passed around the Matthew Harding stand showed an image of former West Ham and Chelsea hero Joe Cole celebrating in his Chelsea days with the words ‘Joe Cole, one of our own’.
Cole came through West Ham’s famed Academy during Harry Redknapp’s tenure and was one of the hottest prospects in English football, even turning down the advances of the likes of Alex Ferguson.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry Kane
Cole played for the Hammers in two separate spells and captained the club when they were relegated on record points as a youngster before being sold to Chelsea much to the anger of West Ham’s fans.
While Cole has admitted to being a Chelsea fan as a child in interviews, the flag has invited ridicule from supporters including Chelsea’s own fanbase who are so critical of Tottenham Hotspur for singing the same words to Harry Kane.
Pictures of Kane wearing an Arsenal shirt as a kid are regularly pulled out to goad Spurs supporters about their star man.
And while Chelsea fans relish it more than most, their new flag leaves them open for ridicule, particularly given the fact Kane came through Tottenham’s Academy, just like Cole did at West Ham.
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