'A skill I've never seen before': Liverpool could have won the Premier League years ago but made the wrong decision in the transfer market

Liverpool ended their 30-year wait for the title in 2020, but Nicolas Anelka could have done it 17 years earlier had he stayed at Anfield, says Danny Murphy.

The French striker arrived on Merseyside on loan in January 2002 after having spent just over two years with Arsenal like a fresh-faced teenager.

Having left for real Madrid In 1999 and a year later at Paris Saint-Germain, Anelka had something to prove when he was signed by Gerard Houllier, but it didn't take long for him to make a good impression on the former Liverpool Midfielder Murphy and his teammates.

Speaking on talkSPORT's The Shortlist, Murphy said: “I didn't really appreciate Nicholas Anelka until he arrived at Liverpool and spent half a season on loan.

“I know he went to Spain early and maybe people remember his short spell at Arsenal but this lad was very calm, he wasn't a problem. He had a reputation for being difficult, no. He trained well, he never complained if he was on the bench because we had a lot of players at that time. He was a great lad.”

While Anelka was a joy to play with, he was a nightmare to defend due to his pace and power, as he played over defenders and caused a lot of problems.

It was that explosive speed that Murphy says made him stand out from the rest.

Murphy said: “His footwork and something I'd never seen anyone do was go from zero to 60 so fast, he'd stop people and then he'd be gone.

“He wasn't a bad finisher, but he scored so often because he got himself into position through his skill.

“One thing I remember about Nico is that no matter how much rain there was or how slippery the court was, he always used casts and I never saw him slip. I don’t know how he did it!”

In just 22 appearances for Liverpool, Anelka scored 125 goals in 364 Premier League games.

That included two titles won with Arsenal in 1998 and Chelsea in 2010, along with three FA Cups and two Community Shields.

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Arsenal got him a bargain when they signed him from PSG for £500,000 and he burst onto the scene aged 17, memorably destroying Manchester United's Jaap Stam in the 1998 Community Shield.

Having won the league and cup double the previous season, Arsenal finished the 1998/99 campaign empty-handed, but Anelka was named PFA Young Player of the Year.

Outside of England, Anelka also won the Champions League with Real Madrid in 2000, Serie A with Juventus and the Turkish Super League with Fenerbahce in 2005.

He also won the European Championship and the Confederations Cup with France in 2000 and 2001.

Despite these achievements in England and abroad, the Frenchman has yet to be recognised as one of the best strikers in Premier League history.

Asked if Anelka is underrated, Murphy said: “I think it's because of his time here, because he left Arsenal quite early and then was out for quite a while, then came back and had a spell with us and then Chelsea.

“Most great strikers have a moment that you see them in season after season, but his was a bit intermittent, maybe that's why.

“He was one of the most talented, although everything came easy to him.

“He wasn't technically brilliant, but he had a talent for taking the ball and getting past people; I would say he just had a talent for finishing. He would grab the balls a bit and try to hit them hard.”

“But in terms of grace and outplaying people, players were afraid of him.

“He played a game at Anfield against Newcastle (in 2002) and dominated the game and destroyed them. I can’t remember who he played against, but you wouldn’t want to see him again.”

Murphy scored twice in that game, one of them after an Anelka cross, in a match also remembered for the failure of the lighting that plunged Anfield into darkness.

“You know, when people were coming off the pitch, it was the first time people like MO (Michael Owen) Stevie (Gerrard) were saying 'oh my God'.

“Then for some reason Gerard Houllier didn't sign him permanently at the end of his loan, instead signing El Hadji Diouf.

“I think if we had signed Anelka that summer we could have won the league the following year.”

Anelka himself seemed excited at the prospect of signing for the Reds and years later recalled regretting not signing.

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“Everything was perfect,” he told the Liverpool Echo. “I loved everything about the club.

“I had an incredible relationship with the fans. I loved them and I think it was reciprocal.

“Looking back, I feel proud to have worn the shirt of this legendary club and to have known this stadium and these incredible fans.”

Houllier's assistant Phil Thompson claimed it was because the player's brother, who was his agent, was trying to sell him back to Arsenal, but Anelka has a simpler explanation.

“It's very simple: it didn't happen because Gerard Houllier wanted to pay a lower salary. That's acceptable, but it has to be said.

“I wanted to sign from the first minute. Of course, from the first day I joined the club there was talk of a permanent transfer.

“If you look at the first time I was introduced at the press conference, I said if I could sign now I would, but Gerard Houllier wanted a loan because he was unsure.

“In mid-March we were in negotiations to sign me. PSG shareholder Alain Cayzac told me that Gerard had told him that Liverpool would sign me. Later, Gerard told me face to face that he would sign me permanently.

“In mid-April we reached an agreement on salary, which had paralysed things a bit, but I was hoping to sign my contract when the League was over but there was no news from PSG or news from Liverpool.”

When he found out Liverpool were linked with another player, he realised the move would not happen and also dismissed Thompson's argument about Arsenal.

Anelka ended up joining then-promoted Manchester City in what was a club-record £13m deal.