Young buck: Nicolas Anelka fires the second of two goals at WembleyNicolas Anelka has no intention of letting his long-awaited chance to shine for France at a World Cup slip after missing the last three tournaments.
The 31-year-old striker has long been an enigma for his country. After scoring twice in a stunning performance against England in 1999, he refused to play under former coach Jacques Santini and spent three years in the international wilderness before being called up by Raymond Domenech almost five years ago.
Now firmly part of Domenech's plans, Anelka is in contention for a starting place in South Africa, where he believes France can repeat its victory of twelve years ago.
'It's a very big competition for any player, I have never taken part in it before and I am very happy to get the chance,' said the Chelsea striker. 'There's no point playing just for the sake of it. We will only be happy if we've played well and if we've won it. Why not?'
France scraped through to the World Cup after their infamous play-off victory over the Republic of Ireland, but Anelka is confident Les Bleus can perform when it matters.
'We think we can win it and we have the players to do so,' Anelka said. 'We have been working well physically and tactically and we can't wait to see what it brings out on the field.'
Having won two English league and cup doubles, with Chelsea this season and with Arsenal 12 years ago, the Premier League's Golden Boot in the 2008-09 season, the European Championship with France and the Champions League with Real Madrid in 2000, Anelka's last-remaining ambition is to star at a World Cup.
He was overlooked by Aime Jacquet in '98 because the coach thought he was too young.
Anelka won Euro 2000 under coach Roger Lemerre, who subsequently did not pick him for the 2002 World Cup because he took Djibril Cisse, Thierry Henry, and David Trezeguet - the top scorers from the French, English and Italian leagues.
Gliding: Nicolas Anelka rounds Denmark keeper Peter Schmeichel during France's 3-0 victory in their opening game of Euro 2000Domenech's decision to snub Anelka in 2006 was more surprising because he had recalled him from his international exile in November 2005. But even when Cisse broke his leg on the eve of the World Cup, Domenech gave Sidney Govou the nod.
Ironically, it was precisely because Anelka did not want to be a replacement for the injured Govou for a friendly match against Yugoslavia in November 2002 that he had turned his back on Santini's team.
Anelka then told Paris Match magazine that he would only return if Santini got on his knees and begged.
But Anelka's unselfish attitude for Chelsea this season has won him many admirers, and his reputation has greatly improved since the days English fans mockingly nicknamed him 'Le Incredible Sulk' for his surly attitude.
His abrupt nature has made him few friends in a topsy-turvy career, but Anelka always speaks his mind. He even criticized Domenech's lack of tactical awareness when France lost 2-0 to European champions Spain at the Stade de France in March.
'It's logical to be critical when you lose a match, and when you lose in this way,' he said. 'We have been working on things this week to make us better tactically.'
The luck of the Irish: Nicolas Anelka (right) fired the goal in a 1-0 win at Croke Park before Thierry Henry handed a 2-1 aggregate victory to France after extra-timeAnelka's Chelsea teammate Florent Malouda has been largely overlooked since France flopped at Euro 2008, where Domenech played him in a defensive role that negated his flair.
Domenech appears inclined to play a more attacking 4-3-3 formation at this World Cup, with Malouda potentially slotting into midfield alongside Jeremy Toulalan and Yoann Gourcuff.
'He does this very well for Chelsea, so he can do it just as well for France,' Anelka added. 'He had a great season for Chelsea. I think the coach will give him his chance and he'll take it.'
With 14 goals in 64 international appearances, Anelka's strike rate for France is meagre, but he scored crucial goals both in qualifying for Euro 2008 and away to the Republic of Ireland in the first leg of the World Cup play-off.
While Anelka scored 11 Premier League goals this term - team-mate Dider Drogba fired 29 - his superb movement freed up the space the Ivorian craves, with his crisp touch and passing providing a link between Chelsea's midfield and attack.
And after finishing the domestic season with silverware in the shape of Chelsea's first Double, could Anelka's burgeoning trophy cabinet be graced by the most precious prize of all on July 11?
source: dailymail
