Joe Cole believes the knee ligament injury that cost him his season was the result of playing on through the pain barrier with niggling problems.

The England midfielder suffered a ruptured cruciate ligament injury during Chelsea's FA Cup triumph over Southend in January.

Pre-season training has been Cole's target for a return to action but he is now determined to let his body and not the calendar decide when he is fully ready.

The 27-year-old insists he has learned a harsh lesson by pushing himself to recover from smaller injuries in a bid to get back into action as soon as possible.

"I won't come back until I am completely ready," said Cole. "My opinion is I got this major injury because all through the start of the season I was playing with niggles. I had ankle injuries and came back too soon.

"The manager wanted me back, and my natural tendency is that I want to play and get out there and play through the pain. It was my call and maybe that is a harsh lesson learned. I will come back when I'm ready to go now, whenever that may be."