Anelka's post-Arsenal career had been far from perfect, playing for a veritable shopping-list of football clubs and never being able to replicate the form he had shown in north London. After an impressive run for Arsenal from 1996-1999, a young Anelka would be tempted away from Highbury by the bright lights and white jerseys of Real Madrid. In his first and only season with Los Blancos, Anelka fell out of favour with the fans and even received a 45-day suspension for refusing to train with the team. He made only 19 league appearance and managed a measly 2-goals before he was offloaded to Paris. Compare this to the preceding 1998/99 season with Arsenal where he had earned 35-league appearances and scored 17-goals utilising his rapid pace and excellent movement off the ball and you see the stark contrast. Anelka's career was mired by controversy and wasted potential, and one cant help but imagine how different his career would have been if hed committed to Arsenal
Hailing from South East London, Sam Heard is an aspiring writer and recent graduate from the University of Warwick. Sam's favourite things include energy drinks, late nights spent watching the UFC with his girlfriend and annihilating his friends at FIFA.
