Nicolas Anelka named in top 10 worst forwards in Real Madrid history

Former Chelsea and Arsenal striker Nicolas Anelka is one of the 10 worst forwards in Real Madrid’s longstanding history, according to Spanish media.

Anelka left Arsenal in 1999 and completed a sensational £22.5m transfer to Madrid, despite Arsene Wenger’s eagerness to keep the Frenchman at the Gunners.

The 43-year-old ex-France international, who won the Premier League and FA Cup with Arsenal, ruthlessly slammed the British media over his treatment in England.

However, Anelka endured an ill-fated spell at Madrid and was unhappy with his treatment under former Los Blancos boss Vicente del Bosque.

The Madrid flop openly criticised Del Bosque and even called out his former Los Blancos teammates for failing to adapt to his playing style.

Anelka, who only managed 33 appearances for Madrid, went on strike during his time at the club and also refused to train for three days amid his torrid spell.

Diario AS compiled the top 10 worst Madrid forwards, with the Spanish newspaper calling Anelka “one of the most notorious failures in the history” of the La Liga club.

Posted below are the top 10 worst Madrid forwards, according to AS.

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• Nicolas Anelka (Real Madrid: 1999-2000)
• Antonio Cassano (Real Madrid: 2006-2008)
• Javier Saviola (Real Madrid: 2007-2009)
• Luka Jovic (Real Madrid: 2019-2022)
• Edwin Congo (Real Madrid: 1999-2002)
• Manuel Canabal (Real Madrid: 1997-1998)
• Perica Ognjenovic (Real Madrid: 1999-2001)
• Elvir Baljic (Real Madrid: 1999-2002)
• Peter Dubovsky (Real Madrid: 1993-1995)
• Frederick Magellan (Real Madrid: 1998-1999)

Anelka lifted a Champions League title with Madrid before he completed a £22m transfer to Paris Saint-Germain in 2000.

Following his only season in the Spanish capital, the former Chelsea star insisted that his former Madrid teammates never made him feel welcomed.

“They never treated me like the other players and I wasn’t welcomed,” Anelka told Spanish newspaper Marca in 2000.

“From the very first day, no-one came near me.

“The only reason I can think of why they did this is that there was so much hype before I was signed.”

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Anelka added: “It is not the same as having to go to a changing room where they don’t like you and make your life difficult.

“Playing in that atmosphere wasn’t easy and Real paid for it.”

Topics: Real Madrid, La Liga, Spain, Football

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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