Happy Anelka in the mood to propel Chelsea towards title

Anelka claims that his return to London, via the Bernabeu, the Parc des Princes, Anfield, the City of Manchester Stadium, Fenerbahce's Sukuru Saracoglu stadium and the Reebok, will be the last stop in his nomadic career.

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At 28, the player with the Champions League pedigree — he won the trophy the year after he left Arsenal — has arrived at his last port of call and Chelsea supporters will soon be celebrating his goals.

He had barely acquainted himself with his new team-mates before he was thrust into action when Claudio Pizarro limped off with an injury half an hour before the end of Chelsea's functional win over Tottenham. Anelka sparked immediately into life, forcing Radek Cerny to save brilliantly with one hand and then rattling the crossbar with a left-foot shot on the turn.

No crowning glory, but Chelsea will not have long to wait. Anelka, the world's costliest player after £85million worth of transfers, is a class act and the man with a gift for scoring will soon be rubbing shoulders with Cristiano Ronaldo.

Money no longer matters to a player who has been pulling in a super-sized salary for the best part of a decade and his conversion to Islam, as well as his recent marriage, has brought contentment.

"It's important to be happy in life and now I feel happy," he said. "When you're 20, you're shy and you don't react the same way.

"Now I'm 28, nearly 29, and I've lived through a lot of different things in my life and everything changes. Even in my head, things have changed and I have grown up as a person. I am happier now, more content and settled in my life. Sometimes you don't realise the chance you have when you are playing at a club like Arsenal.

"When you have played for Real Madrid and Arsenal, you are part of great squads, but Chelsea are also one of the biggest clubs in the world. There are maybe only 10 clubs of this size and I'm glad to be here. I will be happy on the pitch and I will do good things. We are not far from Arsenal now, so anything is possible."

Anelka was bought from Bolton for £15m on Friday with the Champions League in mind, but suddenly Chelsea are in with a shout of winning their third Barclays Premier League title.

Anelka guarantees goals and his contribution over the remaining 16 matches will be telling. Chelsea are just four points off the top and Anelka is the kind of player who is more than capable of capitalising on any mistakes should Manchester United or Arsenal slip up.

Injured skipper John Terry, who arrived early to show the striker around his new surroundings, said: "Nicolas is a great player. He gives us pace, he stretches teams, he has that threat and is a quality, all-round player. He's a great guy and he will fit in very well."

By the time Anelka arrived as a 58th-minute substitute, Chelsea were already in front. Juliano Belletti scored his first goal for the club with a rifled effort at Wigan last year, but he topped it with a 35-yard strike that beat Cerny for pace and power.

Tottenham boss Juande Ramos claimed his side matched their opponents, but Chelsea were superior in every department.

What happened to the Spurs pressing game that was almost perfect at Arsenal in the Carling Cup semi-final last week? Perhaps they were spent, still coming to terms with Theo Walcott's deflected equaliser at the Emirates, or perhaps they invited trouble by spending too much time on the edge of their own area.

Ledley King again impressed at the heart of the defence and was being too critical of himself when he told team-mates he could have prevented Chelsea's second.

King felt he could have closed down Shaun Wright-Phillips, but Chelsea's bundle of energy is breezing his way into contention for Fabio Capello's first England squad.