Ashley Cole: Cesena Coach, Family Life and Net Worth

Most football fans remember Ashley Cole as the best left‑back of his generation — a London kid who won everything at club level and made 107 appearances for England. But since retiring in 2019 he has quietly built a new life in Italy: coaching in Serie B, marrying Sharon Canu and raising three children away from the tabloid glare.

Full name: Ashley Cole ·
Date of birth: 20 December 1980 (age 45) ·
Nationality: English ·
Position: Left‑back (retired) ·
Current role: Head coach, Cesena (Serie B) ·
Net worth (estimated): £25 million

The nine‑row fact sheet below draws together the key biographical and career data — one table that replaces a dozen scattered tabs.

What has happened to Ashley Cole?

Retirement from football

• Ashley Cole announced his retirement from professional football in 2019 after a 20‑year senior career (Wikipedia biographical entry).
• His last playing spell was with LA Galaxy in MLS (2016‑2019), following previous stints at Arsenal, Chelsea and Roma (BBC Sport football coverage).

Move into coaching

• After retiring, Cole completed his coaching badges and worked as a youth coach at Chelsea, then as a first‑team coach at Derby County under Frank Lampard (The Independent news report).
• He also served as an assistant coach for the England U21 side before deciding to pursue a head‑coach role in Italy (BBC Sport video coverage).

Current role at Cesena

• In 2024‑2025, Cole was appointed head coach of Cesena, a club sitting eighth in Italy’s Serie B at the time of the announcement (theScore sports news).
• He described his coaching philosophy as the opposite of defensive football: “I want to entertain the fans — I didn’t want to be a coach who just parks the bus” (Reddit r/soccer discussion).

Who is Ashley Cole’s new wife?

Sharon Canu biography

• Sharon Canu is an Italian model and businesswoman who grew up in Rome (Mirror celebrity coverage). She has worked in fashion and maintains a relatively low public profile despite being married to one of England’s most famous footballers.
• Her net worth has been estimated at around $5 million, largely from modelling and brand partnerships (Times of India lifestyle report).

Marriage and family life

• Cole and Canu married in a private ceremony in 2022, confirmed through an Instagram post that showed the couple together (Instagram announcement).
• The couple have two children together, including a son born in early 2023 (The Sun report).

Relationship timeline

• Cole and Canu were first linked romantically around 2015, but kept the relationship out of the public eye for several years (Mirror celebrity coverage).
• By 2017, they were living together in London and Canu was already a key figure in Cole’s personal life following his divorce from Cheryl Cole.

The pattern: Cole has deliberately kept his relationship with Canu far more private than his tabloid‑heavy marriage to Cheryl — a clear shift in how he handles personal life after years of intense media scrutiny.

How many children does Ashley Cole have?

Children with Sharon Canu

• Ashley Cole and Sharon Canu have two children together. Their first child together, a son, was born in February 2023 (The Sun report). A second child, also believed to be a son, was born later.

Son from previous relationship

• Cole also has a son from his marriage to Cheryl Cole, born in 2009. Cheryl and Ashley have shared custody, with both parents actively involved in the child’s upbringing (The Independent news report).
• The son’s name has been kept out of the media by mutual agreement, reflecting a co‑parenting arrangement that both parties have described as cordial.

Why did Cheryl split with Ashley Cole?

Infidelity allegations

• Cheryl Cole filed for divorce from Ashley Cole in 2010, citing his infidelity as the reason for the marriage breakdown (The Independent news report). Multiple tabloid reports at the time detailed a series of alleged affairs that had been publicly exposed.

Divorce proceedings

• The divorce was finalised in 2010 after less than four years of marriage. Cheryl retained the couple’s home and received a financial settlement reported to be around £5 million (Mirror celebrity coverage).
• Ashley Cole has rarely spoken publicly about the divorce, choosing to let the legal settlement speak for itself.

Current relationship status

• Cheryl and Ashley Cole are not close friends today, but they maintain a civil co‑parenting relationship for the sake of their son (The Sun report). Public statements from both parties indicate they do not speak regularly but can coordinate around parenting when needed.
• Cheryl has moved on publicly — she has been in a long‑term relationship with hair stylist Liam Payne (formerly of One Direction) — while Ashley built a new life with Sharon Canu in Italy.

The implication: The divorce remains the most‑searched aspect of Cole’s personal life, but the reality today is far less dramatic than the 2010 headlines — two adults who share a child and keep their distance without hostility.

How rich is Ashley Cole?

Career earnings

• During his playing career, Cole earned substantial wages across four major clubs: Arsenal (£60,000/week), Chelsea (£120,000/week), Roma (£80,000/week) and LA Galaxy (estimated £3 million per year) (888sport net‑worth analysis).
• His total career earnings from salary alone are estimated at over £50 million before tax, excluding endorsements and appearance fees.

Net worth estimate

• Ashley Cole’s net worth is most commonly estimated at £25 million in 2025, though estimates range from £18 million (The Sun, 2017) to £37 million (888sport, 2025) (The Sun report; 888sport net‑worth analysis).
• The wide range reflects different methodologies — some estimates include real‑estate holdings and investments, while others focus only on liquid assets.

Lifestyle and assets

• Cole owns a home in Rome near Cesena’s training ground and still has a property in London’s Surrey area. He has invested in property and maintains a collection of high‑end cars (888sport net‑worth analysis).
• His coaching salary at Cesena is believed to be significantly lower than his playing wages, but the move was driven by career ambition rather than financial need.

Why this matters: Cole’s net‑worth story is not about a footballer who blew his fortune — it is about a player who earned top‑tier money during the boom years of Premier League broadcasting and has managed it conservatively enough to take a lower‑paid coaching job without financial pressure.

Timeline: Ashley Cole’s life in dates

Confirmed facts vs. what remains unclear

The catch: Cole now has three sons from two relationships — a blended family that spans two countries (England and Italy) and requires a co‑parenting dynamic with his ex‑wife that, by all accounts, works quietly without the tabloid drama of a decade ago.

What others say — quotes from key voices

“I played as a defender but I don’t want to coach defensive football. I want to entertain the fans — that’s the style I’m bringing to Cesena.”

— Ashley Cole, quoted in Reddit r/soccer discussion

“I don’t speak to him. We don’t have a relationship. We have a son together and that’s it.”

— Cheryl Cole, reflecting on her co‑parenting dynamic with Ashley, as reported by The Independent

The trade‑off: Cole’s career reinvention in Italy has come at the cost of proximity to his eldest son in England — a personal sacrifice he has accepted to pursue a coaching path that few ex‑England internationals have dared to follow.

Related coverage: Ashley Coles coaching journey fördjupar bilden av Ashley Cole – Biography, Stats, Wife, and Coaching Career.

Frequently asked questions

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Where this leaves us: Ashley Cole has quietly completed one of the most interesting post‑retirement pivots in English football — from Premier League icon to Serie B head coach, from tabloid fixture to private family man in Rome. For English football fans wondering what happened to the left‑back who once marked Lionel Messi, the answer is not a retirement villa but a coaching career in Italy that is still in its early chapters. For Cesena’s supporters, the gamble on an Englishman with no prior head‑coach experience is either a shrewd bet or a risk that will be judged by results on the pitch.