Nicolas Anelka had a hurricane of a career, but it was at Chelsea that he found the calm in the storm and was understood more than anywhere else.
Anelka: Misunderstood is the latest Netflix documentary about a former football star. It is absolutely fascinating from start to finish and it is well worth the time for fans of any of his clubs or fans of the sport in general. It gives a behind the scenes look at the pressures a young super star faces and how the media twists things to suit the story that sells. Narratives are created and players suffer.
From this point, this article will contain slight spoilers, so much as an article about a real life event can have spoilers. If spoilers do not bother you, continue reading.
A main focus of the documentary is how Anelka never really felt like he belonged at any of the clubs he played for. Only Liverpool, where he was on loan, seemed to make him feel complete but they did not opt to bring him in permanently. But there was one club he only had positive things to say about. One club where he felt more at home than anywhere else: Chelsea.
Beyond playing for Chelsea more than any other club, Anelka seemingly felt at home with the Blues. The documentary quickly moves to that night in Moscow. While many Chelsea fans remember that tragic night for John Terry’s slip, Anelka reminds viewers that it was his penalty that was saved that truly ended the match.
It wrecked him. He speaks about not feeling as if he deserved to play for Chelsea after that. Like many other times in his career, he put his head down to prove someone wrong (in this case, himself), but the damage was done. That being said, it was clear that he felt indebted to the Blues.
In other, similar situations shown throughout the documentary, a failure such as that caused Anelka to point at someone else and tell them they were wrong. In hindsight looking back on his career, he was able to point at himself for many of the issues caused. But as he was playing, the only time he did so was during his time at Chelsea following that penalty kick.
This follows a similar theme that many Chelsea players talk about in their retirement: that their best times as a player came in Blue. The club has worked hard over the years to be more than an employer. The club truly seems to be a second family for the players that come in. Time and time again former players, such as Anelka, trumpet that fact.
That is not to say Chelsea or even their fans are perfect though. Anelka’s struggles in the documentary were often the result of the media taking one thing, however small, and blowing it up. Fans do not get to see the actual goings on behind closed doors. They just get the blown up headlines and react accordingly.
How many players have fans turned on after bad media? How many players have left in a cloud caused by the media? It is hard to tell. The documentary, beyond showing Anelka’s career, gives an insight into that pressure players have internally and externally and the problems that can have. That is often not noticed or thought of by fans and as a whole, we must be better about remembering that players are just people too.
The Chelsea part of the documentary is short comparatively, but that makes sense. People want to watch to see the hurricane that was Anelka’s career. Chelsea was the eye of the storm when everything calmed down. The player was misunderstood everywhere but the Blues.