Nicolas Anelka (born March 14, 1979) is a French football striker who plays for Chelsea of the Barclays Premier League. After making his name at Arsenal, he has since played for eight teams in ten years, earning himself the nickname "Le Sulk" in the process.
He transferred to Chelsea from Bolton Wanderers for a reported £15 million in January 2008. As a result, he became the most paid-for player in football history having commanded more than £85 million in transfer fees.
He wears the 39 shirt for club and country.
Anelka started his career at Paris Saint-Germain as a youth player and was said to have great potential for striking a ball and set play goals. In February 1997, at the age of 17, he joined English Premier League club Arsenal for a fee of £500,000 under newly appointed manager Arsene Wenger.His first team opportunities were limited in the 1996–97 season, but in the 1997–98 season he broke into the first team, after a long-term injury to striker Ian Wright. Anelka was a key player in Arsenal's "Double" win, of both the Premier League championship and the FA Cup trophy that season. Anelka scored the second goal in Arsenal's 2–0 win over Newcastle United in that season's FA Cup final. He is famous for his pace, power and tricks. He is valued at £20 million.
Anelka signed a professional contract at Paris Saint-Germain, a return to the club at which he used to play as a youth player, in a transfer deal worth £20 million. After eighteen months, Anelka returned to the English Premiership in January 2002 with Liverpool on a short term loan deal until the end of the season. He contributed to Liverpool's late push to come second in the league but manager Gérard Houllier decided not to offer him a permanent deal after the end of the season in favour of signing his future Bolton team mate El Hadji Diouf. Nevertheless, he was placed 96th in the 100 Players Who Shook The Kop. Anelka opted to join newly promoted Manchester City F.C., and the £13 million fee paid by manager Kevin Keegan was a club record.
In January 2005, the speculation ended when Manchester City announced that Anelka had completed a £7 million transfer to Turkish team Fenerbahçe.Anelka helped the Turkish club win the league title in 2005. In August of that same year, there was considerable speculation in the press that Anelka was being courted by Newcastle United for a return to English football, although the transfer never came about. Anelka stayed on at the Turkish club where he played with them in the UEFA Champions League, but they finished bottom of their group.
During the summer transfer window of 2006, press reports once again linked Anelka with a return to English football. Portsmouth F.C. manager Harry Redknapp was allegedly willing to either pay £8.2 million to bring the striker to Fratton Park, or take him on a season long loan.
On August 25, 2006, Bolton Wanderers signed Anelka on a four-year deal for a club record of £8m.
On January 11, 2008 it was confirmed that Anelka would join Chelsea for £15 million, making him the most expensive player in footballing history, with £87 million having been spent on his services since he left Paris Saint Germain for Arsenal in 1997.