Nicolas Anelka

Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has branded Nicolas Anelka as one of the players who had a major influence on his career.

It comes as a surprising statement considering that Anelka is regarded as one of the journeyman in football.

On September 27 of 2016, Sam Allardyce was removed from his managerial position from the England national football team after only having been in charge of the national side for around 70 days and the main reason of why Allardyce spent such a short period of time was due to the 2016 English football scandal which was a string of events that involved many figures from English football clubs being fired due to allegations of corruption and things of this nature.

There were investigations being done in relation to a few managers of English clubs including Southampton, Queens Park Rangers and Barnsley. Many of the head chiefs of these clubs had been involved in some way or another with bribery, avoiding tax and even becoming ambassador for fictitious sports company as a way to earn money in exchange for players.

Wayne Rooney has been really dragged around the past few weeks for his current form for United.

The career of the golden boy is winding down fast. Roy Hodgson did him a favour by selecting him for the Euro 2016 else his international career could have gone to the dogs. He has lost his starting shirt at Old Trafford under Jose Mourinho, playing the role of the regular substitute in games.

Former Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal striker Nicolas Anelka has stated that the French team is the favorite to win the first Champions League match on Tuesday.

Former African player of the year Freddie Kanoute says he has no regrets choosing Mali when he had the opportunity to play for France.

The player, who is 38 years of age now, has played for top clubs in the Europe including West Ham,Tottenham and Sevilla. He is now based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) even though he was born in France. Kanoute represented the French team up until the Under 21 level in 1990 due to his great football skills but decided, rather surprisingly, to return to Africa to play for Mali.

Nicolas Anelka has revealed why he left Paris Saint-Germain in 1997 without signing a professional contract with the French club.

Indeed, Nicolas Anelka was at that time only a youth player and at the age of 17 decided that he wanted to leave the club. The former French international has revealed his decision in a recent documentary.

He said that at that time he wanted to have enough playing time, but Paris Saint-Germain could not guarantee him that. Most of the time they were telling him that he was too young and that he will have to wait for his turn, but Anelka believed that he was good enough to play.

He said that as he watched older players like him who were struggling to get playing time, he made up his mind to leave the club. He believed that he had nothing to lose at that time as he was not playing.

Nicolas Anelka, who was participating in the launching of a football academy, has stated that France may reach the Euros finals. It was a long time since Anelka talk to the media and reporters were keen to find out what he has become and also asked him questions about current football events.

Concerning the French team, he said that Didier Deschamps has chosen the best players at his disposal. He believes that there are some quality players in the French team and that playing on their home ground can give them an advantage. He said that France has always done well when hosting a tournament and he hopes that they can make it all the way again.

Belgium is another quality team in the tournament which possesses strong players, and he predicts that there might be France-Belgium final at the Euros.

Former Arsenal and Liverpool striker, Nicolas Anelka has stated that Frenchman Franck Ribery will enjoy playing under Carlos Ancelotti.

The Italian manager is touted as being the man to replace Pep Guardiola, who will be leaving for Manchester City in the summer.

Nicolas Anelka has played under the Italian manager when he was at Chelsea believes that Ribery will flourish under the guidance of Carlos Ancelotti. Anelka stated that the Italian manager has a human approach to management and that he understands players given that he was a former player himself.

Anelka, who has worked under several managers, has stated that Carlos Ancelotti is the best manager that he has worked with and that Ribery will definitely like him. He believes that Ancelotti knows how to motivate his players and encourage them to give their best.

Liverpool, like other clubs, is often linked with respect to its performances with the ability of different managers.

It has finished in the second place not once but three times in the Premier League. The recent era was under Brendan Rodgers while 2008 and 2009 were under manager Rafael Benitez. The years 2001 and 2002 were spent under Gerard Houllier.

What was common in all the eras was the limited ability of the managers to build on the finish in the second place and helping the team to conquer the numero uno position in the consecutive championship league. If you look at the season of Houllier, he had taken a decision not to move Nicolas Anelka to Merseyside. That had been a nightmare season for Houllier.

He hasn't only signed on Salif Diao and Bruno Cheyrou but also allowed Nicky Barmby and Jari Litmanen to leave the team. This transfer window did not prove well for Liverpool.

Liverpool has a weird habit of finishing second in the League Premier. While they compete, they’re no stranger to missing out on the first place.

The problem for Liverpool is that they seem to struggle to capitalise on the fact they got so close, and suffer from an immediate drop down the table, as happened under Brendan Rodgers care.