By the time the 2010 World Cup came around, England had turned the art of underachievement into something of a trademark on the global stage.

With the much-hyped Golden Generation once again struggling to progress beyond the quarterfinals of a major tournament, Fabio Capello took charge of the Three Lions’ campaign in South Africa that summer.

The Italian manager, renowned for his strict and regimented approach, could not reverse England’s fortunes, as they crashed out in the round of 16 against Germany.

Ashley Cole and Joe Cole were both part of Capello’s squad 16 years ago, and rumours later emerged suggesting that players had grown bored during that World Cup because of the former Juventus boss’s stringent rules.

“I was playing Call of Duty – I was never bored, me!” Ashley told FourFourTwo, with Joe nodding in agreement.

“I loved watching the other games, and the food was fantastic – we had everything we needed,” added the former West Ham United midfielder.

“Snooker, table tennis…” Ashley recalled, while Joe described the camp’s atmosphere as more of a retreat than a pressure cooker: “It was like a youth club for grown-ups! Personally, I had a great time.”

However, there was one adventure on their bucket list that Capello firmly vetoed – swimming with sharks between matches.

“Yeah, I was fuming!” Joe admitted, while Ashley revealed he too had been ready to dive in with the great whites.

“Yeah! Sharks and I have this sort of relationship – I don’t like the sea because I’m terrified of them, but I’d finally built up the courage to get into a cage, and then it got cancelled!” he said.

While many, including Capello, would consider such an activity far too risky, Joe insisted that the odds of disaster were slim.

“You’d have to be really unlucky to miss a game,” he joked. “Imagine the headlines: ‘Ashley Cole misses match after being attacked by a shark.’”

“We went on a safari as well, so we thought, ‘We’ve got a day off, we’re in South Africa, and I might never come here again.’ We tried to arrange it, but Fabio put his foot down. He said no. I thought, ‘But it’s harmless… ish?’” Joe laughed.

‘Could It Be Coming Home?’ with Joe Cole and Ashley Cole is presented by Carling, the official sponsor of the Emirates FA Cup and Adobe Women’s FA Cup. The show is available to watch on YouTube and Spotify, or to listen to wherever you get your podcasts.

Chris Flanagan, Senior Staff Writer