Arsenal bungle Anelka transfer with Real's cash

Arsenal are staring at the wreck of their transfer dealings this morning as late moves to try and sell Nicolas Anelka collapsed last night.

The moody French star is to leave the London club but an attempt to sell him for £25 million was bungled by Arsenal as they admitted that Real Madrid had already made a £6.5 million down payment on the striker.

Anelka now looks set to move to Real Madrid in a £15 million transfer later in the summer - and Arsenal will miss out on £10 million as they try to find a replacement.

SS Lazio tried last minute attempts to revive their bid for Anelka by raising their offer for the player to £25 million at which point Arsenal confessed to the prior existence of a down payment from Real Madrid. To sign Anelka Lazio would have to pay the massive transfer fee and then pay Real to release Anelka on top of that making a £31.5 million outlay on the coltish young forward.

Lazio pulled out of any deal immediately and Arsenal were left with the ruins of the world's biggest transfer sale.

The Real transfer is by no means certain to succeed as Arsenal have reported the Spanish club to FIFA for making illegal approaches to Anelka. The player's brothers - Didier and Claude - acted as his agents last month when they met REal president Lorenzo Sanz to \discuss a deal to take Anelka to Spain for £15 million. The down payment by Real of £6.5 million will now have to be covered by any club wanting to sign Anelka this summer. The player himself only wants a move to Real and a strike by the youngster may try and force any move through if Arsenal continue to block the deal. Arsenal have complained about Real's approaches to Anelka but have acted on them in accepting the Real down payment so any further block on an Anelka transfer to ReaL Madrid would leave the London club lacking any credibility.