Anelka threatens to leave Chinese club

• AFP, Monday, May 21, 2012 3:57 PM

Former French international Nicolas Anelka says his stint as player-coach of Shanghai Shenua may be about to end.

"If there is still no one to support me and (they) continue to play little tricks behind my back... then I will quickly decide whether or not to retire," he said. "This will be decided on what happens in the next few weeks."

Anelka joined Shenhua in January on a two-year contract for a reported salary of 234,000 euros ($307,000) a week. The club is near the bottom of the standings in China's Super League.
It fired French head coach Jean Tigana, another high-profile foreign import, last month and named Anelka "player-coach" and former DR Congo national manager Jean-Florent Ikwange Ibenge as "acting" head coach.

Anelka said he was basically serving as head coach and would find it difficult to accept someone taking over his responsibilities: "In substance, I exercise the power of head coach, since I decide the players' list and handle daily training."

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