Remember that one time Ashley Cole shot a student? In February 2011, the Chelsea left-back was at the heart of a media storm when it was revealed he had accidentally gunned down sports science student Tom Cowan with an air rifle. Cole was larking about at the Blues's training ground when the incident happened, and struck Cowan from just five feet away. Cole claimed he was unaware that the rifle was loaded when he fired, and the student required on the spot medical assistance after being shot. When the wound failed to stop bleeding, Cowan was forced to undergo further medical treatment later. A club source was quoted by the News of the World in the wake of the controversy as saying:
Ashley pulled the rifle from a box and started larking about with it in the changing room, not realising it was loaded. It ended up pointed at Tom just 5ft away. Then the gun went off with a loud pop and Tom screamed as this lead pellet hit him in the side.
Surrey police investigated the incident and, though they gave Cole 'strong words of advice', no charges were made against the Chelsea defender, who apologised to Cowan, the club's hierarchy, and his teammates for his actions. Which other Chelsea controversies deserve to be mentioned on this list? Share your thoughts below in the comments thread.
Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
