Just a quick wrapup of the two exciting games from yesterday.

Nigeria vs Cote d'Ivoire was obviously the neutral's choice fixture of the group stages (and possibly the whole tournament), and even though there was just a single goal, it was a very entertaining game. The goal itself was a wonder goal by Salomon Kalou, beating 4 Nigerian defenders before drilling the ball past Ejide in goal. Taye Taiwo came very close early on with a thumping long-range free-kick that ricocheted off the bar. Yaya Toure was outstanding for the Elephants, and it's amazing how much he's improved since the World Cup in 2006, becoming a regular for Barcelona along the way. Nigeria have 8 strikers in the squad, and started with 4 (Kanu, Martins, Yakubu and Utaka), but as ever they are prone to disorganisation. Previously they had Jay-Jay Okocha as the playmaker that brought them together, but at the moment Seyi Olofinjana is not good enough, and John Obi Mikel is still too much of a holding player.

The Elephants had Drogba battling away up front all game, but it was Kalou who really added the spark up front. Meite and Gohouri were shaky at the back, especially against Martins' pace, but Kolo Toure was immense as always, and Arthur Boka was quite nifty. There were great individual skills on show, lots of power, lots of pace, and more than a few good chances, but profligacy and lack of composure meant that the goals count was minimal.

As for Benin vs Mali? Well Benin were highly unfancied, and they lost as expected, although they did give Mali a very tough game. Fredi Kanoute was quite disappointing for the Malians, as was Mahamadou Diarra (although he was solid), but when Mamady Sidibe was fouled in the box, it was Kanoute who calmly and efficiently despatched the penalty.

Benin really upped the tempo when they went a goal down, and were it not for a combination of some last-ditch interceptions and wasteful passing in the final third, they could easily have had 4 or 5 clear chances on goal. Stephane Sessignon was a classy presence for Benin, but it was Razak Omotoyossi who really stood out as the most exciting Beninese player in the second half, taking the game almost single-handedly to the Malians. It was a tight game overall, and Benin had set out with a 4-5-1, seeking to capitalise on any mistakes. Unfortunately the penalty threw their plans into disarray, but they really made a go of it, and that will give them confidence to perhaps be more attacking for the rest of their matches. 

Rumours had been brewing over the last few months that Chelsea were interested in signing France forward Nicolas Anelka from Bolton. These were logical of course, because Anelka has been excellent this season, and has buckled down and worked on his game and temperament in the last few years. Chelsea were not the only interested party, and both Arsenal and Manchester United were rumoured to be interested, along with several continental clubs. The fees mentioned were anywhere between £8 and 12 million, and you can't say that Anelka isn't worth that.

Today however, official confirmation was received that Bolton rejected a bid from Chelsea. The amount of the bid is unclear but it is believed to be around £11 million, and it looks like Chelsea will have to shell out a lot of money, despite their slightly hilarious protestations of late that they are "not a spending club" and looking to "tighten the strings" and so on.

Apart from the fact that Chelsea have unlimited finances, and pay virtually 40-60% extra for all of their transfers because other clubs don't want to let them off lightly, there are several others reasons why Anelka will cost them a lot more:

1. Bolton are in quite a strong position. Anelka signed a 4 year deal at the start of the season. If he goes now, they can use the money to bring someone in, if he stays, then his class will be invaluable to them, and he can still be sold in the summer when Bolton can start a bidding war. Anelka has for a change not thrown his toys out of the pram and said that although he'd like to be playing Champions League football, he'd be happy to stay at Bolton as well.

2. Along with Dimitar Berbatov, Anelka is the best striker in the Premier League that isn't cup-tied for Europe. There are other strikers available in Europe (a few), but because of the way the Premiership is, it takes time for players coming from abroad to adapt, and with only 5 months left of the season, January signings generally need to come from within the league to have an impact. Anelka and Berbatov are not just two of the best in England, they are probably two of the best in Europe, and with Spurs reportedly wanting £35 million for Berbatov, Anelka is definitely the better option.

3. The African Nations Cup will deprive Chelsea of their two best attackers Drogba and Kalour. Pizzarro hasn't been much good, and Shevchenko's overall floppery is quite well known. They will be in serious need of attacking threat for a month or so, and so a striker buy is crucial.

4. Nevermind going missing for the ANC, but Drogba has once again come out and said that he wants to leave Chelsea, so they are also in the market for a top striker for next season, and Drogba's comments might seem him drop out of favour by the end of this one. The Ivorian had this to say - "The problem is that I say that I want to leave since two or three years. Mourinho's departure didn't help, to the contrary it made my desire to leave even bigger". Chelsea's main striker wants out, they're short of two for the next month and a half, their other strikers are poo, and they need someone who's good, not cup-tied, and able to spearhead them for at least a few years.

Bolton really hold all the cards on this one, although a lot depends on Anelka maintaining his good temperament and decent behaviour. If he decides to throw a strop and hands in a transfer request or something, then Chelsea will be able to bring the price down. But Anelka knows that he can get his move at the end of the season as well, so there shouldn't be any massive urgency. Peter Kenyon is also quite a poor negotiator, so Bolton should be able to get at least about £16-18 million for Anelka, if not more.