A strain of French that is rarely without tears

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Anelka the enigma at Liverpool's door

It sounds like a transfer made in heaven. Liverpool needed a striker, and Nicolas Anelka was available. The Frenchman is one hell of a talent, but it is his talent for making life hell for any club he joins that casts a question mark over Gérard Houllier's judgement. The red half of Merseyside will hope Anfield's French manager can find a means of communication.

Anelka was quick to tell Liverpool's website how keen he was to play for the club, saying: "Liverpool are a very big club with a very good profile and I think it will help my career." Which means that the Reds fit neatly into the catalogue from which Anelka selects his employers.

Houllier was very enthusiastic about the deal. "A player like that can't lose his talent and his assets from one day to the next. Liverpool's style should suit him and in the long run, his speed, his explosive game and his finishing qualities will help me, I hope, to reach our objectives."

Perhaps, though, the vital words Houllier used were "I hope". Anelka's ability was never in question; he was marked out for a place in the headlines from the start of his career as a 17-year-old at Paris Saint-Germain. The goals came, closely followed by the acclaim. For those persuaded by recent events to ponder the effect of fame, glory and money on young men in professional football, this Frenchman provides a valuable case study. No wild, violent behaviour, but for that substitute sulkiness and exploitation. He has become a master of creative use of the contract/transfer system, but that was a lesson he learned early, when Arsenal seemed to antagonise all France by signing him just before he turned 18 and was therefore not tied by contractual obligation to PSG.

The young are eager to learn but have a habit of remembering and understanding things others would rather they did not. Consequently, Arsenal were repaid in kind: after a number of run-ins with the management, Anelka decided "I'm not playing for you, contract or no contract. I'm off." But not before he had used his wonderful talent to help them to the Double in the 1997-98 season, scoring in the FA Cup final.

Breaking into the France team the following season – after their World Cup triumph – he appeared to appreciate that he was a marketable commodity and made sure it was a seller's market. Arsenal suffered as he employed his star-quality sulks and his agents in equal measure after deciding he was going to play for Real Madrid come what may. It is difficult to know what a club can do when £22m-worth of asset refuses to work. Try to cut the best deal and prove they are in control by choosing his next club? Arsenal reached agreement with Lazio; Anelka had £4m-worth of reasons not to go to Italy; he joined Real and Arsenal waited for the loot. Not bad business and the bad taste left was sweetened by Anelka's failure to come to terms with life in Spain.

More rows, more sulks, but as any children stamping their feet in temper discover, the impact of tantrums reduces with repetition. Real's patience did eventually wear thin and in the summer of 2000 the fractious French fidget packed his bags for Paris, and PSG had him back – Anelka's three years' experience since he first left costing them £22m. And guess what, he was soon sulking again. Anelka and the PSG coach, Luis Fernandez, found themselves rather like Britain and the United States – divided by a common language. After weeks of rows, Fernandez, a man not to be messed with in his playing days for France, had heard and seen enough.

So now Liverpool and their French manager have taken on the challenge as they try to replace Robbie Fowler, a striker with whom their relationship apparently broke down. Another rugged midfielder, Terry McDermott, a prominent part of Liverpool's impressive past, yesterday expressed his doubts about the wisdom of Houllier taking on the challenge. Speaking on Radio 5 Live, McDermott said Anelka's behaviour at Arsenal had been "quite ridiculous", and added: "But I think there is every chance Anelka has some understanding with Houllier that we don't know about. There is certainly something there. It is a gamble but one which Liverpool think is worth taking." It will only cost them his wages until June and then a multi-million-pound fee... but half a season is a long time in Anelka's career.