The award was in recognition of the Chelsea striker becoming the first player to score 10 goals during the 2008/09 Barclays Premier League season.

In addition to his award, Anelka will receive a £1,000 donation for the charity of his choice.

The in-form France international reached the 10 goal mark after scoring a brace in Chelsea's 2-0 away win at Blackburn Rovers.

leading goalscorer

Anelka opened his account by scoring the second goal as Portsmouth were defeated 4-0 on the opening day of the season. Goals against Manchester City at Eastlands, Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium and at home to Aston Villa helped maintain Chelsea's impressive early season form.

Six strikes in his side's last three matches - the highlight being a hat-trick in Chelsea's 5-0 defeat of Sunderland - saw him leapfrog early-pacesetter Amr Zaki as the Barclays Premier League's leading goalscorer.

Anelka leads the 'Race For The Golden Boot' ahead of Wigan Athletic's Egyptian striker Zaki who has eight goals to his name. Darren Bent of Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City's Robinho trail a further goal behind with seven strikes.

Fact file

  • Nicolas Anelka was born on 14th March 1979, in Versailles, France.
  • After starting his career at Paris Saint-Germain, Anelka joined Arsenal in February 1997 at the age of 17 for a transfer fee of £500,000.
  • After leaving Arsenal in the summer of 1999, Anelka had spells at Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool (on loan), Manchester City, Fenerbahce and Bolton Wanderers before joining Chelsea in January 2008 for a reported £15m.
  • Anelka has 53 international caps for France, scoring 12 goals. He was part of the squad that won Euro 2000.