Chelsea sign Anelka

Chelsea have completed the signing of French international striker Nicolas Anelka for a fee of around £15 million from Bolton. The ex-Arsenal and Real Madrid striker has been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge for some time and a deal finally went through this afternoon.

Chelsea was keen to sign Anelka to compensate for the departure of leading scorer Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou to the African Cup of Nations. The Ivory Coast internationals will away for about a month while they play at the Jan. 20-Feb. 10 event.

With Andriy Shevchenko injured and Claudio Pizarro in unconvincing form, the Blues had been left short in attack as they challenge for the Premier League and Champions League.

"Even though we miss so many players, we didn't make rushed decisions," said Chelsea manager Avram Grant. "We decided to take players not only for six weeks, but to think about Chelsea longer term."

Anelka, who signed a new four-year contract at Bolton in August, has scored 11 goals this season for a team struggling to avoid relegation and could make his debut against Tottenham on Saturday.

He will be eligible for the Champions League since he has not played in it this season, with Bolton taking part in the second-tier UEFA Cup.