Justin Hoyte cringes whenever anyone talks about "Cashley" Cole. Happy to admit to being a friend of Chelsea's left-back, the Middlesbrough defender forged a bond with English football's favourite pantomime villain during their time as Arsenal team-mates. While Cole infamously severed his ties with Arsène Wenger's side after "nearly swerving off the road in shock" on hearing that the Gunners were "only" prepared to offer him £55,000 a week, Hoyte's parting this summer proved considerably more amicable.
Now establishing himself as Boro's right-back, Hoyte is looking forward to pitting his wits against Chelsea at The Riverside this lunchtime. While he will have no compunction about curtailing his friend's overlaps should Cole recover from a hamstring injury in time to start for Luiz Felipe Scolari's side, the England Under-21 international does not want to see him singled out for personal abuse from the stands.
Vilified by the Wembley crowd in the wake of an error against Kazakhstan last Saturday, Cole remains one of the game's least popular figures but Hoyte insists his detractors are misled by a false image. "I felt for Ashley last Saturday," he said. "I know he's a great defender but everyone makes mistakes."
Other England players would have been forgiven by now but Cole has a reputation for not only being avaricious but selfish in the wake of allegations that he cheated on his wife, Cheryl.
"I know Ashley as a person and he's fine. I don't see anything wrong with him," countered Hoyte. "He's a good person, he works hard at his football. He just wants to achieve things really. He's moved on from Arsenal but you can't say if he's greedy or not. Anyone could say you're greedy if you go to work somewhere else. And if you ask your manager for a promotion, are you greedy then? You can't say who is greedy or not greedy.
"You don't actually know a person until you sit down and talk to them and maybe until you've known them for years. It's hard for fans, though, because they know only what they read in the papers and see on the pitch. But if you actually had a chat with Ashley or went to dinner with him then you'd find he was a completely different person [from his image].
"When I was in Arsenal's youth team, Ashley helped me along the whole time, he got me through. He's a great inspiration and one of the best left-backs in the world. I'll always look after him for the way he looked after me."