'It was all difficult' - Anelka opens up on his Real Madrid nightmare

Nicolas Anelka has explained how his big career move to Real Madrid in 1999 turned into a huge disappointment.

An impressive two-and-a-half-year spell at Arsenal propelled Anelka into the spotlight as a youngster, prompting Real Madrid to fork out a colossal €35m to sign him in the summer of 1999.

But the striker, who was just 20 at the time, failed to deliver and even confessed leaving Arsenal was a mistake.

He lasted just one season in the Spanish capital, scoring seven goals in 33 outings in all competitions. The highlight of his stay was scoring a brace against Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals.

Nicolas Anelka scores #OTD in 2000 for Real Madrid ⚽️#UCL | @realmadriden pic.twitter.com/xpMm65yXW9

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) May 3, 2020

But Anelka’s relationship with Real Madrid soured as the season progressed. He accused the club board of treating him ‘like a dog’ while going on strike, falling out with the late Lorenzo Sanz, and then-manager Vicente del Bosque.

Los Blancos eventually offloaded him to another old club of his, Paris Saint-Germain, in the summer of 2000.

“I found a new style at Real Madrid and I couldn’t use my qualities to the maximum,” Anelka told Movistar+.

“I had the feeling that I was playing to 40, 50 or 60 percent of my quality. That frustrated me a lot and that’s why I had a tough time at Real Madrid.

“It was a new league, new team, new players, new mentality, new language…

“It was all difficult.”

Anelka retired in 2016 following further spells with Mumbai City, West Brom, Juventus, Shanghai Greenland Shenhua, Chelsea, Bolton, Manchester City, and Liverpool.

He is currently promoting his Netflix documentary ‘Anelka: Misunderstood’.