Which club will Joe Cole move to this summer?

All the major news outlets are reporting Harry Redknapp's comments on Joe Cole's future. Cole played for Redknapp at West Ham, before Redknapp's sacking in 2001 lead to a quick decline and a break up of a fabulous side that contained Lampard, Cole, Ferdinand, Carrick and Defoe (all in England's World Cup 2010 squad). So there may be a reasonable basis to his remarks that Cole is set to leave Chelsea, but not move to Tottenham.

The recent BBC headlines do reveal a pattern in Joe Cole's time at Chelsea and why he may feel he needs a change of scene. During his time at Chelsea under Jose Mourinho and now Carlo Ancelotti Cole has been alternately sidelined and praised. Mourinho especially has made comments about Cole's 'discipline' - suggesting that he may be more of an individual talent than a team player.

Ancelotti 'sure' of Joe Cole deal, 12 Mar 10

Chelsea hopeful of Joe Cole deal, 05 Mar 10

Ancelotti cannot guarantee games for Joe Cole, 22 Jan 10

Ancelotti praises 'genius' Cole, 24 Oct 09

Cole hit by fresh injury setback, 16 Jul 09

Cole ruled out for rest of season, 17 Jan 09

Cole's injury record is also not getting better. Cole broke into Redknapp's West Ham side in the 1998/99 season and in the 11 subsequent full seasons he has only twice dipped under 30 senior appearances for his club side - but both were recent seasons, 2006/7 and 2008/9 at Chelsea.

If Cole is set to leave Chelsea and stay in England then it seems fairly certain that he will move to one of last seasons top 7 clubs; as all but a couple of the England squad are concentrated in this group it seems that Cole's England career may also rest on staying amongst the elite.

Liverpool
Liverpool could certainly do with some extra creativity in midfield, but Europa League football and a wage bill that is sure to come under pressure this summer are not indicators that favour Liverpool.

Aston Villa
There are barely any mentions of a move to Villa for Cole, which may be connected to Villa's wage structure which may well not stretch to keeping one of Chelsea's Galacticos in the manner to which he has become accustomed.

Manchester City
Although City may like the look of Cole, Cole may look at the ever increasing size of the City squad and wonder whether his opportunities may be too limited - and there is no Champions' League football on offer. City are the only side capable of exceeding his wage demands, but even they are likely to be considering UEFA's latest plans to restrict wage bills to a proportion of turnover.

Tottenham Hotspur
Despite Redknapp's words, some media outlets have linked Cole to a move to Spurs in recent days. A reunion with Redknapp makes so much sense, now that Spurs have Champions' League football, that a move to Tottenham can't be ruled out even now.

Arsenal
If Cole does leave Chelsea and Spurs are out of the picture, then Arsenal are the only London club that can offer Cole Champions' League football - and Cole has always been based at London clubs. With Cesc Fabregas looking to move to Spain, Cole would offer an experienced head to sit in the hole behind the forwards, although his wage demands may not be easy to swallow.

Manchester United
The rumours connecting Cole with Manchester United have intensified in recent days, and after signing Michael Owen on a free last summer this would seem another logical cheap signing for a club that is clearly operating under strict financial controls. Whether Cole can be persuaded to leave London is the main problem - but at least the guarantee of high-profile Champions' League fixtures is on offer.

Real Madrid
If there is a reunion to be had could Cole join Mourinho in Madrid - given past problems this does seem unlikely.

In my opinion Cole will choose between the teams who have qualified for the Champions' League. With Cole's history of playing for Redknapp Spurs would seem to be the logical destination; but unless Redknapp is trying to throw people off the scent Tottenham aren't in the running. If Cole can be persuaded to leave London then Manchester United is the likely destination, but otherwise he would come in to replace Cesc Fabregas at Arsenal. On balance Manchester seems Cole's most likely home when he returns from South Africa.

*Where will Joe Cole play next season?