Former West Ham Star Facing Potential Bankruptcy & Will Appear in Court in May

Former West Ham and England forward Carlton Cole is facing the possibility of bankruptcy and will appear in front of an insolvency judge in May, according to a report from The Sun.

Cole was once on £30,000-a-week but now faces bankruptcy in a remarkable fall from grace. He made 289 Premier League appearances for West Ham and Chelsea, scoring 52 goals and providing 23 assists.

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He made seven appearances for the England national team from 2009 to 2010 and is actually yet to retire from professional football.

After leaving England, the 34-year-old had short spells with Celtic, Sacramento Republic and Persib Bandung. His contract at Bandung was terminated last August, and he has been looking for a club ever since.

Despite reports of him training with lower league clubs Southend United and AFC Wimbledon, Cole has not been offered a contract anywhere.

The former England man could really do with a lucrative contract because his current predicament is not a pleasant one.

A previous hearing on the matter was adjourned and Cole is set to face an insolvency and companies judge at the High Court on 16 May.

This is not the first case of former footballer's suffering from a major fall from financial grace. Manchester United legend Dwight Yorke last year faced a bankruptcy hearing after his company’s assets fell to £2.