Lucas Barrios struck twice to complete a good week both for club and personally for the Paraguayan, after he scored in the midweek 2-1 AFC Champions League last-16 first leg away at Central Coast Mariners.

Evergrande was 2-0 ahead before Barrios struck, with Elkeson (39) and Linpeng Zhang (62) on target, to pave the way for the former Borussia Dortmund frontman to continue his good form with goals after 66 and 81 minutes.

Edu pulled a goal back for the visitor in injury time, but an eighth win in nine league games was already assured for the defending champion.

Despite that record Shandong Luneng only trails on goal difference, albeit having played a game more, after it beat Shanghai SIPG 1-0. Wang Yongpo grabbed the decisive goal after 58 minutes.

Third-placed Guizhou Renhe is eight points adrift of the top two after recording a 3-2 win over Guangzhou R&F.

Zvjezdan Misimovic (26) and Chunyu Li (46) fired Renhe 2-0 ahead. Rafael Coelho managed a double in reply but Bo Qu's 83rd-minute goal in between ensured a home win.

Winless Changchun Yatai came from two goals down to grab a 2-2 draw at Dalian Aerbin.

Dabao Yu (47) and former Barcelona midfielder Seydou Keita (64) gave Dalian control only for Pei Shuai (69) and Jiang Zhe (89) to steal a point.

Tianjin Teda, which was deducted six points for match fixing at the start of the season, moved off the foot of the table with a 2-2 draw at Beijing Guoan.

It needed an injury-time Carmelo Valencia equaliser to do so after Frederic Kanoute (35, 59) had twice given Guoan the lead. Yang Cao scored the initial leveller on 51 minutes.

Australian midfielder Erik Paartalu played the full 90 minutes for Tianjin.

Bofei Lu scored twice from the penalty spot as Jiangsu Shuntian drew 2-2 at home to Shanghai Shenhua.

Bofei's 13th-minute opener was cancelled out by Eduardo Dady (27) only to again score from the spot on 34 minutes. Xu Liang equalised for good four minutes before half-time.

Qingdao Zhongneng and Shanghai Shenxin played out a goalless draw.

The Cote d'Ivoire striker left the club in acrimonious circumstances in January, with Shanghai officials saying he had breached his contract.

"We now have evidence which we believe will give Shenhua a 99 per cent chance of winning a lawsuit at FIFA," a lawyer acting for the club told the Sina web portal.

The anonymous source from "Shenhua's legal team" said that papers would be submitted to the sport's governing body on Wednesday.

Shenhua will provide evidence that Drogba breached his contract and that Galatasaray had violated FIFA rules by luring a player away from his current club, according to the report.

Shenhua declined to comment when contacted by AFP.

Chinese media previously reported that Drogba had asked FIFA to nullify his contract after the club defaulted on payments following a shareholder dispute dating back to September.

Drogba came off the bench to score five minutes into his Galatasaray debut, a 2-1 victory over the Turkish Super Lig's bottom club Akhisar.

And he is in line for a Champions League return when Galatasaray faces Schalke in the last 16.

Drogba, a UEFA Champions League winner with English Premier League side Chelsea last season, signed an 18-month deal worth €10 million ($13.06 million) with the Istanbul side having previously signed a two-and-a-half year deal with Shanghai in June 2012 on a reported salary of $US300,000 ($292,870) a week.

Drogba's exit from Shanghai followed that of former Chelsea and France teammate striker Nicolas Anelka, who joined Italian giants Juventus on loan.

"FIFA's authorisation arrived yesterday. There's no problem. Drogba will be able to play on Friday," a source at the Turkish Football Federation told AFP.

Galatasaray meanwhile revealed on its website that the TFF had told it 'Didier Drogba's temporary licence is ready'.

Cote d'Ivoire striker Drogba, 34, signed an 18-month contract with top-flight Galatasaray at the end of January but Shanghai Shenhua, with which he signed on a two-and-a-half year deal in June last year, opposed the move.

He will be paid 10 million euros ($12.98 million) to play in Turkey with a bonus of 15,000 euros ($19,470) for every match played.

The Chinese club, which had vowed to appeal to FIFA, will not be compensated for his departure, Turkish newspapers revealed, claiming the player's contract with Shanghai was null and void as he had not been paid for the past three months.

Galatasaray is due to play German side Schalke next Wednesday evening (Thursday morning AEDT) in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League.

Drogba - a Champions League winner with English Premier League club Chelsea last season - is looking to relaunch his career in Europe and play at a higher standard than in China, with a view to being at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

The 33-year-old leaves Chinese outfit Shanghai Shenhua to sign a six-month contract, with Juve including the option of a further year.

A statement on juventus.com read: "Anelka is a Juventus player. His contract, which runs until June 30, has been submitted to the league.

"The agreement includes the option to renew the deal until June 30, 2014."

Anelka underwent a series of medicals in Turin last week but the deal was not ratified until Friday.

The Frenchman issued a brief statement on Juve's website, which read: "Juve are bigger than everybody else."

Juve becomes the 10th club of a career which has seen Anelka rack up estimated transfer fees of almost £85 million, while also scoring 14 goals in 69 caps for France.

He was part of its victorious EURO 2000 squad and has won the UEFA Champions League with Real Madrid, league titles in England with Arsenal and Chelsea and in Turkey with Fenerbahce, and three FA Cups, two with the Blues and one with Arsenal.

Galatasaray announced on Monday a deal that would see Drogba, 34, join the Super Lig club immediately after the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa.

But Drogba's Chinese Super League club, which he joined from Chelsea in the 2012 off-season, issued a statement on its website describing officials as "deeply shocked" by the announcement, and insisting Drogba remained under contract in China.

"We understand that Drogba is eager to participate in the European Champions League," Shanghai Shenhua officials said in the statement.

"Shanghai Shenhua Football Club and Drogba on July 1, 2012 officially signed a formal contract for a period of two and a half years. The club has acted in accordance with this contract, and has effectively fulfilled the responsibilities and obligations of the club.

"Currently, Drogba is still a player of Shanghai Shenhua Football Club, the contract between the two parties is still within the period of validity.

"Shanghai Shenhua is prepared to collate all the evidence and information and submit it to FIFA in order to protect its interests."

Galatasaray announced on Monday that Didier Drogba had agreed an 18-month deal to move to Turkey, where he would join Wesley Sneijder as part of an ambitious new-look side.

Drogba, speaking through his representatives Sports PR Company on Twitter, said at the time: "The opportunity to play for this great club was an offer that I could not turn down.

"I am looking forward to playing in the Champions League again, against the best clubs in Europe."

Despite his protests to the contrary, reports persisted that Drogba's move to China had not worked out, largely due to boardroom wrangling, prompting him to seek a return to Europe.

A host of clubs have been linked with a move for the Ivory Coast star amid rumours he was set to quit Shanghai just six months after moving to China, and Gala has now officially declared its interest.

A statement on the club's official website this (Monday) morning read: "Galatasaray Sports Club has begun official negotiations regarding the transfer of Ivorian professional football player Didier Drogba from FC Shanghai Shenhua."

Speculation has been rife that Chelsea's UEFA Champions League-winning hero was set to quit Shanghai Shenhua after just six months in China, with a host of clubs linked with the Cote d'Ivoire star.

But Galatasaray has moved into pole position after making an offer to his current club, with a spokesperson for the Sports PR Company telling Press Association Sport: "They have made a formal bid for him."

It is understood a deal could be concluded quickly for the 34-year-old, amid reports he has agreed an 18-month contract.

Turkish champion Galatasaray has already signed Inter Milan star Wesley Sneijder this month as it looks to bolster its squad after reaching the last 16 of the Champions League, where it will face Schalke, and it has also been heavily linked with Manchester City defender Kolo Toure.

Drogba's last act for Chelsea before joining Shenhua last northern summer was scoring the winning penalty in its final shootout triumph.

Last month Drogba returned to train with his old club during the Chinese off-season in preparation for the Africa Cup of Nations, in which he is currently competing in South Africa.

FIFA rejected a special request from the striker for him to join a club on loan outside the transfer window, amid speculation linking him with Juventus, AC Milan and Liverpool, among others.

Despite his protests to the contrary, reports persisted that Drogba's move to China had not worked out, largely due to boardroom wrangling.

He signed a two-and-a-half-year deal at Shenhua, netting him around £250,000 ($377,983) a week and reuniting him with Nicolas Anelka.

Anelka is on the verge of joining Juventus on a deal until the end of the season.

There are conflicting reports about the precise nature of Drogba's move to Galatasaray, amid suggestions it would initially be a loan arrangement with an option to buy for around £8.5 million ($12.85 million).

The Bianconeri has already made an approach to sign Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente on a Bosman free transfer in the northern summer, but with Arsenal loanee Nicklas Bendtner sidelined through injury, the Italian champion is eager to bolster its immediate options.

Quoted on calciomercato.com, Marotta told television programme Domenica Sportiva: "Drogba? We are always making enquiries and we have made one for him.

"We have asked about his availability and after that we will look at the financial aspects and talk to the coach."

Juve boss Antonio Conte has publicly ruled out any approach for the former Chelsea striker, but player recruitment is overseen by Marotta.

A person claiming to be Drogba's agent, Carlos Arino Bajo, had claimed Drogba had an option to end his two-and-a-half year contract in China, a claim later rejected by the London-based Sports PR Company.

Bajo had told tuttomercato.com: "Didier has a termination agreement with the Chinese club and I think he has a lot of possibilities to move to Italy in January.

"There is real interest from Juventus and AC Milan, and it is the same from Didier regarding the transfer.

"There have been contacts with both clubs and next week we will hear from them again. He would love to compete in one of the world's best leagues, such as the Italian Serie A."

But the Sports PR Company, which counts Drogba and several of his former Chelsea team-mates among its clients, responded through its official Twitter account.

The company wrote: "Please note, these quotes are not correct. This guy is not Didier's agent, his sole agent is Thierno Seydi (a FIFA-registered agent based in Senegal)."

Drogba has been training with Chelsea, with which he won the UEFA Champions League in May, in the lead-up to the African Cup of Nations which begins in South Africa on 19 January.

Drogba could return to Europe during the current transfer window, just six months after he left Chelsea to join Shanghai Shenhua on a lucrative deal.

The 34-year-old has reportedly failed to settle in China and agent, Carlos Arino Bajo, revealed he has an option to end his two-and-a-half year contract early.

"Didier has a termination agreement with the Chinese club and I think he has a lot of possibilities to move to Italy in January," he told tuttomercatoweb.com.

"There is real interest from Juventus and AC Milan, and it is the same from Didier regarding the transfer.

"There have been contacts with both clubs and next week we will hear from them again. He would love to compete in one of the world's best leagues, such as the Italian Serie A."

The link to Juventus is, however, at odds to comments made by boss Antonio Conte last month.

Conte ruled out an approach for Drogba, who scored the winning penalty in Chelsea's Champions League final success in May, despite reports the Serie A leader was keen to sort out a deal.

Drogba would be unavailable to play for any new club until after the African Nations Cup, with the final due to be played in Johannesburg on February 10.

The Ivory Coast striker has been training with Chelsea in the lead-up to the tournament after returning to Europe following the end of the Chinese season in early November.

"The discussion is between the club and himself, I don't know about the specific details," Shanghai Shenhua spokesman Ma Yue said. "But so far we haven't got the final result."

According to the sports website of leading Internet portal Sina.com, Anelka has agreed to forgo the final year of his contract as long as Shanghai allows him to leave on a free transfer.

The report said the former Arsenal, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bolton Wanderers and Chelsea player wants to return to the Premier League by signing with QPR.

Anelka, who has 69 caps for France, made headlines when he signed with Shanghai at the beginning of last season, becoming China's first direct import from the English Premier League.

But his presence failed to inspire the team and he scored only three goals during the season, with Shanghai finishing ninth in the 16-team league.

As the side struggled, Shanghai brought in Anelka's former Chelsea team-mate Didier Drogba, making the team one of the highest paid in the Super League.

The 34-year-old Drogba signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Shanghai in July but the Cote d'Ivoire striker has also been reported to be reconsidering his options after the disappointing season.

Shanghai Shenhua, bankrolled by colourful video-game mogul Zhu Jun, has been a hotbed of strife during the season with players complaining about unpaid wages amidst highly publicised management turmoil.

After taking on Anelka, the club promptly signed experienced French coach Jean Tigana, but sacked him early on after a string of losses.

Anelka was then named player-coach until Argentine coach Sergio Batista was brought in despite objections from the Frenchman, nicknamed 'Le Sulk' for his surly demeanour.

Anelka himself was shuffled around between defensive midfield, up front, on the wing and in his favoured 'second striker' position in a baffling array of tactical approaches.

The 33-year-old has said the season was the biggest challenge of his career, as he tried to stop the rot eating away at the team and mould an inexperienced group of players into a side capable of winning the increasingly competitive Chinese Super League.

"The team is very young and, apart from the foreign recruits, lacks experience," Anelka, who rarely gives interviews, told France's Le Journal du Dimanche after Tigana was sacked. "We're starting from zero, or near enough.

"I adapt, have discussions with developing players, and give them my experience. I had my first team talk (last week). I speak in English, the club translator explains my instructions in Chinese."

A report in the Gazzetta dello Sport suggested Juve had made 'significant progress' with an approach for the Shanghai Shenhua forward and UEFA Champions League winner, who could be tempted back to Europe after failing to settle in China.

The Serie A champion has also been linked with Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente, but Conte insists Juventus is in no financial position to sign 'top players'.

After his side's 3-0 victory over Atalanta, he told the Corriere dello Sport: "Speaking about the transfer market seems a bit disrespectful to my current players, who have showed great desire and dedication to my ideas over the last year.

"We are just fine keeping our feet on the ground. This is a difficult time given the current economic climate, not just for Juve but for all the other clubs.

"I won't be bringing in any top players because we don't have the means to support them.

"We have to make the most of what we have, we have to work hard and try to improve our current players into top players.

"Some have already got there and some will become great."

Juventus will lead the Serie A table going into the new year as Conte looks to win a second Scudetto in just two years of stewardship in Turin, with the Bianconeri also through to the knockout stages of the Champions League.

Shanghai, which already boasts former Chelsea stars Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka, hopes to sign the 39-year-old Boca Juniors defender Schiavi for the coming season, the Oriental Sports Daily reported.

Schiavi, a former Argentina international, has held talks with Shanghai's Argentine coach Sergio Batista, the paper said.

Meanwhile, Brazilian midfielder Elkeson is set to join Guangzhou Evergrande after being released by Rio de Janeiro club Botafogo.

The 23-year-old is tipped to travel to China on January 4 to meet Evergrande's Italian coach, Marcelo Lippi, and undergo a routine medical examination.

Chinese clubs awash with cash from the nation's economic boom have become attractive destinations for global football stars approaching the end of their careers, or youthful talent seeking to build on their potential.

FIFA says it informed Drogba he won't be exempted from international transfer rules while under contract with the Chinese Super League club, whose season ended this month.

Drogba, whose contract expires in 2014, can join another club on a permanent or temporary deal on January 1.

The 34-year-old Cote d'Ivoire captain hoped to play extra matches to prepare for the African Cup of Nations, which kicks off on January 19 in South Africa.

FIFA upheld its rules in previous cases when making Major League Soccer players David Beckham, Thierry Henry and Landon Donovan wait until January to make loan moves.

World football's governing body said it was considering a request from last season's UEFA Champions League-winning hero on the day the Blues sacked manager Roberto Di Matteo.

FIFA told Press Association Sport in a statement: "We can confirm that the player, Didier Drogba, has submitted a request for authorisation to be registered outside an open registration period for a club on a loan basis.

"Our services are currently looking into the matter."

Drogba, who quit Chelsea after scoring the winning penalty in the Champions League final, has been considering training with his former club during the Chinese Super League off-season, something Di Matteo said he would welcome prior to his own departure.

But Drogba's request to join another team on loan to maintain his match fitness ahead of the African Cup of Nations has sparked speculation the arrangement could prove something even more substantial.

Fernando Torres has been in miserable form and was dropped for Chelsea's Champions League defeat at Juventus.

Existing FIFA rules prevent Drogba from representing another club until 1 January.

The 33-year-old is currently plying his trade in China for Shanghai Shenhua but has recently been linked with a move back to the Premier League.

Allardyce, who has guided the Hammers to sixth place in the table after the opening 11 fixtures, signed Anelka for Bolton Wanderers for a then-club record fee in the northern summer of 2006 and revealed he would like to work with the France striker once again.

"It could interest me, of course it could," he said.

"It would be of interest if that is a possibility financially for us and he wanted to come.

"I have had no conversations with Nicolas' agent or anything like that at this time."

Anelka was seen as a marquee signing for Bolton when he was signed from Turkish side Fenerbahce and his form at the Reebok Stadium earned him a big move to Chelsea a year-and-a-half later.

Allardyce, who has yet to see big-name northern summer signing Andy Carroll score for the Hammers, believes Anelka transformed his Bolton side into a team that could challenge at the right end of the table.

He said: "His professionalism and dedication was why he was such a good player and we never had problems at Bolton at the time he was with us.

"He was the difference - he was the reason we went into the top end, the top four, rather than the top eight."

Much has been made over the years of Anelka's demeanour on and off the pitch but Allardyce reckons the perception of the former Arsenal and Real Madrid forward is off the mark and hopes the family man could be tempted to head back to London.

Asked whether he ever had a problem with Anelka's questionable temperament Allardyce said: "He never was like that in his entire time I had him.

"He was disappointed I left, when he came and played for me I had him at a very, very good time - probably at the height of his career, I would think, because he had matured into a dedicated professional.

"I think he has always been dedicated but he got sidetracked by certain situations through his younger days but he learnt from that, his experience across Europe.

"He had a girlfriend, who is now his wife, and his family and I think that has matured him - I think Nicolas has still got his family here in London, I don't think they moved out to China."

One stumbling block for a potential deal would come if Anelka refused to take a drop in his wages as he is currently reported to be earning around £250,000 ($384,034) a week in China.

He has also been linked with a return to Liverpool or a move to fellow struggler Queens Park Rangers but all three clubs would be hard pushed to fork out the sort of money the Frenchman is currently bringing in from Shenhua.

Chelsea's Champions League-winning hero has been repeatedly linked with a return to the Premier League since moving to the Chinese Super League in the northern summer, including a mooted two-month loan to Liverpool.

But the Ivory Coast striker, 34, told the Shanghai Morning Post his sole focus was on helping Shenhua improve on its ninth-placed finish when its new season begins in March.

"I hope next season I can start again from the beginning with Shenhua," he said.

"Because I joined relatively late, I didn't prepare with the team early in the season, so our results were not very good."

Drogba quit Chelsea for a reported $300,000-a-week payday in China and notched eight goals in 11 appearances for his new club.

But he has had to cope with more than one change of manager and a boardroom wrangle that sparked reports he and fellow Blues old boy Nicolas Anelka could have their lucrative contracts cancelled.

Claims surfaced in a Sydney newspaper last week that the Shanghai Shenhua striker - who has been playing alongside UEFA Champions League winner Didier Drogba this season in the Chinese Super League - had been knocked back as a potential signing by Wanderers coach Tony Popovic.

But the former Newcastle Jets and Beijing Guoan fans' favourite - the scorer of six goals in 17 games in an injury-curtailed season for Shanghai - tells a different story.

He describes the assertion that he had been knocked back by the A-League newcomer as 'funny' and declared the club had 'begged' him to sign.

"There was certainly a chance of me going to Western Sydney and I found the article claiming that I wasn't wanted by them actually quite funny, considering they were hounding me to come back and sign for them," he said.

"I was disappointed with the suggestion that the club weren't interested because they were begging me to come to an agreement.

"Through an agent I know in Sydney we had numerous discussions with Wanderers on salaries and what-not and the reality is that I couldn't drop below a certain price.

"So when I read that they weren't interested it made me laugh in one sense and disappointed me in another way because the truth is far from that.

"I'd had several lengthy discussions with the club and I know that the club had meetings with FFA (its owner) on the issue. I wish Wanderers well but was not impressed with what was written."

Griffiths, who quit the Jets for Beijing Guoan in 2008, earned a reported $1 million for his single season at Shanghai, which underachieved despite the presence of Nicolas Anelka and Drogba, finishing the season on Saturday with a 3-0 win over Qingdao Jonoon but having to be content with 10th on the ladder.

Griffiths, 32, who scored Shanghai's third against Qingdao Jonoon, is now looking forward to a short break back in Australia before, in all likelihood, committing to a new contract at Shanghai or elsewhere in the Chinese Super League.

"I'll decide what to do in December but I am more than happy to stay in China another year. I am comfortable here and enjoy the country and its culture," he said.

"If Shanghai want me then I am happy to talk or there are other possibilities also in China. Shanghai will wait and see who comes and goes before making a decision on making another offer and I am also in contact with several other clubs. I have told everybody I will make a decision after my holiday next month."

Despite finishing the season strongly, Griffiths missed three months of the campaign through a knee injury and admits it took its toll.

"It's the longest period of time I have been out for in my career and it was incredibly frustrating," he said. "I wasn't sure what to do about it times and wasn't always sure whether I could fully depend on what the Chinese doctors and physios were telling me.

"But I am over it now and I enjoyed the last part of the season playing in behind Didier Drogba. I always thought I could do a good job there and I think I will be bigger and better next year."

As for the future of former Chelsea star Drogba in China, Griffiths revealed: "I don't think he knows himself right now whether he will go or stay. We spoke about it just the other night.

"He still has a contract and it all depends I suppose on salaries and what happens there."

Doubt has been cast over the future of Drogba and fellow former Blues forward Nicolas Anelka after reports of a power struggle at their new club.

Drogba, who ended his eight-year stint at Stamford Bridge in the northern summer to move to China, has been linked with a return to the English Premier League, but insists he has no plans to leave Shanghai.

"I'm here. I just arrived, like, two months ago," the Ivory Coast international told BBC Sport.

"I'm really happy here - I am. I am really happy here. So I have no reasons to leave. I don't want to leave. I want to stay here as long as I can, win some trophies with my team, and make our fans very happy.

"It's difficult at the moment but I know that there is hope, and I believe."

Asked how long he saw himself staying with the Chinese Super League club, he replied: "My contract. My contract is two and a half years and maybe more. Maybe more and I hope more because I'm really happy here.

"I miss the Premier League because it's the best league in the world but, really, I don't regret my choice."

Drogba arrived in China soon after Sergio Batista had replaced Jean Tigana at the helm, but has played down the significance of the recent upheaval.

"It's what happens at a normal team, at a normal club, like it happened at Chelsea, like it happened at Manchester City, like everywhere," said the 34-year-old, whose side lies ninth in the 16-team table with six games remaining.

"That's football, that's part of the game, you know. Like, the manager comes, if he doesn't get results, they change.

"It's the same thing. Football is universal. It's the same thing that happens everywhere in the world."

It had been suggested the player was not being paid, given the reported financial issues at the club, but Drogba insisted that was not the case.

"Of course they are [paying me]," he said.

The Australian striker, who has formed a potent attacking axis with Cote d'Ivoire ace Drogba and Frenchman Nicolas Anelka in recent weeks, says the 34-year-old UEFA Champions League winner is determined not to let uncertainly over who will pay his $250,000 weekly wage bill hamper his desire to fire.

He scored in Shanghai's 3-0 win over Liaoning Hongyun last weekend against a backdrop of bickering between the club's main backer, billionaire Zhu Jun and the board.

Jun is demanding his fellow shareholders honour an agreement to dramatically raise his shareholding in the club as a reward for personally funding big-name signings.

"Didier is happy at the club but he is somebody who commands a certain level of respect," Griffths said.

"He regards China as a personal project and new football frontier for himself, but who knows what will happen over the money side of things. That's beyond his control."

Griffiths, back to his best form as a right-sided attacking midfielder after shrugging off a long-term knee injury, believes his new friend is keen to stay and leave a legacy in China.

Drogba has struck five goals in seven appearances and according to Griffiths is unflinching in his work ethic.

"That's one thing that has surprised me, I really didn't think he would come here so committed to succeed," he said.

"But that just shows what sort of person he is. He treats every game the same, whether it's a Champions League final or a game in the Chinese Super League.

"He wants the ball, he wants to score goals and he wants his name to be remembered in China for all the right reasons. It's so good to have him at the club."

Griffiths, 33, whose own future will be decided in December with the option of a return to the A-League on the table, said: "The way we have been playing I can't see us losing any of the last six games, we are ninth now and have been scoring goals and playing some pretty good football after a horrible start to the season.

"I can see us sneaking in an Asian Champions League spot - that's what we're aiming for. It's a shame that Drogba wasn't here for the start of the season, otherwise we'd be aiming for the top spot."

Griffiths also paid tribute to the other half of Shanghai's attacking axis, much-travelled Anelka, saying: "Most of the attention has been focused on Didier but Nicolas goes under the radar. He's been setting up goals and having Didier here has taken a lot of pressure off him and he is back playing his normal game.

"If we keep this team together, next year is going to be huge for the club."

Griffiths hasn't ruled out being a part of that future. His contract expires at the end of the season but he has impressed since his return from injury, providing several assists and three goals in 12 games.

"That's definitely a possibility and something I would seriously consider if the opportunity was there, especially the way we have been playing lately," he said. "If we keep this team intact I can see the title coming here next year. If we keep the same team I will be more than happy to stay.

"At some stage I would love to go home and finish my career but there's no immediate hurry. We will see what happens.

"It's been a different experience here. At Beijing Guoan I was the go-to man; I never got injured and was scoring regularly. Here I am out on the wing and Drogba is the focal point which is easy to understand because it's hard to compete with that sort of player.

"It enables me to be more involved in the build-up play and we've got some pretty good combinations going.

"Against Liaoning Hongyun on Saturday was probably the best I have felt in a game for about three years. The role I have now involves a lot more running and hard work and it's a totally different role to playing up front - but it's easy when you have Drogba and Anelka around you."

Griffiths also saluted Sydney FC's capture of Alessandro Del Piero, saying: "Four million dollars over two years - Sydney will get their money back with change.

"It's an awesome signing and I'd love to see other A-League clubs follow suit, obviously money permitting. The league needs Del Piero. It has gone a bit stale and it needs characters in the game.

"It needs bit of controversy also. Everybody hated Kevin Muscat but he got people talking and that generates interest from sports fans in general in Australia."

Drogba started last weekend's game against Liaoning Hongyun, and scored its last goal in a 3-0 win, after Shenhua head coach Sergio Batista said the row had been 'basically resolved'.

But Zhu Jun, a flamboyant online gaming tycoon who has bankrolled the club for years and reportedly threatened to withhold the salaries of foreign players, who also number Colombia midfielder Giovanni Moreno, denied any deal.

He is said to be demanding other shareholders grant him majority control of the club and on his microblog on Sina Weibo - China's equivalent to Twitter - issued a new deadline for agreement to be reached by the end of the month.

"Now, I made a difficult decision to believe you one more time, one last time! And this time I have a deadline: two weeks," Zhu wrote at the weekend, without giving details of the dispute or saying to whom the message was aimed.

Media reports say that under a 2007 deal, Zhu's 28.5 per cent stake in Shanghai Shenhua was supposed to rise to 70 per cent if he invested more than 150 million yuan ($22.66 million). Zhu has reportedly spent about 600 million yuan ($90.62 million).

The state-backed Shanghai Youth Daily newspaper on Monday quoted an unnamed source as saying: "If this issue is not resolved satisfactorily, from October Zhu Jun might take action.

"If the issue of Drogba's salary is still not effectively handled, he might again book a ticket home."

Shenhua is ninth in the 16-club Chinese Super League.

The signing of the ex-Chelsea players made headlines around the world and highlighted a dramatic revamp of the corruption-plagued league.

Kaimu Zheng (40), Jiajun Bai (85) and former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba (90) all hit the target for mid-table Shanghai as the boardroom row that threatened to tear the squad apart is played down.

After an apparent power struggle behind the scenes at the club, coach Sergio Batista claimed all was now well and that the team's biggest stars, Drogba and Nicolas Anelka, would be staying put.

Jiangsu Shuntian kept up the pressure on at the top of the table with a 2-0 win at home over Guizhou Renhe.

Aleksandar Jevtic fired Jiangsu in front after 62 minutes and Cristian Danalache made sure of the points in stoppage time.

The win lifts Jiangsu just one point behind leader Guangzhou Evergrande, and 10 clear of third-placed Guizhou.

After helping Chelsea win the Champions League final in a dramatic penalty shoot-out, the 34-year-old Ivory Coast striker left Chelsea for Shanghai Shenhua on a lucrative free-transfer.

However, following an apparent power struggle behind the scenes at the Chinese Super League club, it had been reported Drogba was looking for a way out and could even be released from his deal - with Liverpool and Real Madrid also possible destinations.

Those suggestions, however, have since been played down by the striker's UK management company.

Arsenal previously tracked Drogba when he was at Le Mans and Guingamp.

Wenger, though, claims the London club was not preparing to go back into the market for the frontman who gave its defence so much trouble during his eight years at Chelsea.

"At the moment no. In my opinion he is not free. He has just left England," said the Arsenal manager.

"I don't know about the situation because he came out with a completely different statement.

"You hear he might go to Real Madrid - but then he says 'I am staying in China'. Is it just because he wants to be paid off? I don't know."

Wenger, meanwhile, remains hopeful Bacary Sagna will extend his stay at Arsenal.

The France defender is currently close to a return from a broken leg suffered at the end of last season.

Sagna recently voiced his concerns in a French newspaper interview after the sales of captain Robin van Persie and midfielder Alex Song, as well as the desire to secure trophies like former team-mates Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri have done since moves to Manchester City.

The 29-year-old, signed from Auxerre in 2008, also revealed, despite heading towards the final season of his current deal in 2013, discussions had not yet started on an extension.

While Wenger is not overly concerned about the situation.

"Bacary didn't want to be negative, but you all know what you can do with any statement," said the Arsenal boss.

"It is important to understand what he wanted to stay. What he wanted to say was not exactly the spirit of the whole thing, but you have the freedom to say what you want in life.

"It is also important you understand what people feel about the club and their job. It is always important to have good communication with them."

Wenger added: "With Sagna we want to extend his contract. He is 29, so his contract finishes when he is 31. So of course we can't give him five years.

"We lost players until now, but the situation is changing and will be in favour of Arsenal much more because of financial fair play. "We will be in a very strong position."

Arsenal hosts Southampton on Saturday, and will have goalkeeper Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny fit again after recovering from a rib injury.

Winger Theo Walcott will be assessed after missing England's game against Ukraine with a virus, while midfielder Abou Diaby is rated as 50/50 after picking up a minor knee problem while on international duty with France and may be rested ahead of next week's start of the Champions League campaign in Montpellier.

Midfielder Jack Wilshere also continues his rehabilitation from an ankle problem which sidelined him all last season.

"Jack is making quick progress now," Wenger said, "he will join in with full training soon."

The 34-year-old became one of the world's highest-paid players when he swapped UEFA Champions League winner Chelsea for the relative obscurity of the ambitious Shanghai Shenhua, in China's Super League.

Vocal in English football, Drogba has kept a low profile off the pitch since arriving in China to a hero's welcome in mid-July, insisting that his reported £200,000 ($299,320) a week was not the main motivation.

"China is a big sports country and it is a big challenge," said Drogba on his arrival, fresh from scoring the goal which won Chelsea the Champions League.

"For me it would have been easy to go to another team in Europe but I chose China because of the challenge."

Drogba got off to a flying start at struggling Shenhua - then 12th in the 16-team Super League - scoring twice on his home debut in the 5-1 thrashing of long-time rival Hangzhou Greentown and quickly earning the tag 'Devil Beast'.

The fanatical home crowd, swelled from the usual 15,000 to 25,000, chanted the veteran's name repeatedly and gave him a rousing cheer as he performed the traditional post-match bow.

"Shenhua's nuclear bomb has arrived," Shanghai goalkeeper Wang Dalei said of his new team-mate, who joins another former Chelsea striker, Nicolas Anelka, at the club.

Although Chinese teams have been luring a fast-expanding group of foreign stars to play for enormous salaries, Drogba is the highest paid and has quickly become a fan favourite, eclipsing Anelka.

"We suddenly found out that football, which is very close to us, can be so thrilling, so touching and so good that you can't help but tremble," prominent football commentator Ji Yuyang wrote in the Oriental Sports Daily.

Despite the plaudits, Drogba has had only a negligible effect on his team so far. He has not found the net since his double and Shenhua is still struggling, creeping up to 10th in the table.

Not that the fans are laying any blame on their new hero, who is on international duty in midweek with Cote d'Ivoire playing Russia in a friendly in Moscow.

"Reliable, exciting and full of class, he's a real leader on the pitch, hopefully he will lead us to glory over the next two years," said Lu Xiaoming, a long-time Shenhua fan.

British expatriate Andy Summers, another Shenhua supporter, added: "It takes time to settle in, but he's played great so far."

The biggest name to play in Chinese football, fans in the northeastern city of Changchun clambered over locked stadium gates to get a glimpse of Drogba during a training session when Shenhua visited for a cup match.

Shenhua's eccentric owner, Zhu Jun, posted a photo online showing the bashed-up back of Drogba's silver Mercedes-Benz Viano after enthusiastic fans gave chase and rear-ended the vehicle, though he was not inside.

Drogba is a rare beam of light in a league battling to recover from a bribery scandal that saw scores of officials and players jailed for match-fixing.

Although that was before Drogba's highly-anticipated arrival on a two-and-a-half-year contract, scars remain and many Chinese fans still prefer to follow European clubs.

The English giant is among several Premier League sides touring Asia in what are widely seen as attempts to build up their fan bases in a potentially hugely lucrative market.

But despite a large crowd of 42,000 on Wednesday night, including many casual fans apparently backing both sides, few blue-shirted Shenhua supporters were to be seen in the stadium except a knot of 100 or so behind one goal.

Earlier in the day, an online campaign started by Shenhua fans had urged the club's supporters to shun the event.

A post from one fan widely circulated on China's Twitter-like weibos read: "If you are a real Shenhua supporter, cancel any plan you have to attend this game against Manchester United.

"Let the sponsors see that this game, which reeks of business and money, should not be scheduled in the middle of our league season."

Also popular were a series of photographs of fans of Beijing Guoan and Shanghai Shenhua - traditionally fierce rivals - who put aside their differences to make a joint statement against mid-season exhibition matches.

Supporters of the two clubs were pictured standing next to a Manchester United merchandising booth with a large banner in English reading: "Love football, hate business".

"I don't think Man United would agree to play Shenhua in the middle of the English Premier League season - so neither should we," Shenhua fan Ma Haiping told AFP.

"I think this is a game about business, I think it's totally boring."

Shanghai Shenhua rested almost all its key players for the friendly, including blockbuster signings Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba.

Other supporters said high ticket prices had deterred them from attending. The cheapest seats were selling for 180 yuan ($27.13) each, nearly a quarter of the price of a Shenhua season ticket.

New signing Kagawa, who was named as man of the match, found the net after 68 minutes against a second-string Shenhua outfit, which lined up without former Chelsea players Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba at the Shanghai Stadium.

Watch Kagawa's goal:

United had the first chance of the game after 25 minutes when Anderson chipped a through ball to another new arrival Nick Powell, who brought the pass down inside the box with his right foot before scuffing his shot wide with his left.

It was the host which drew the first save from either goalkeeper as Joel Griffiths broke through the middle before forcing a good stop from Anders Lindegaard who deflected the Australian's effort wide.

Kagawa - playing just behind a lone striker- was a thorn in the side of the host and used neat footwork to break free of the Shenhua midfield before sliding in the largely ineffectual Federico Macheda, who could not beat Shengjiong Qiu from inside the area, the home goalkeeper pushing the Italian's effort wide.

The visitor started to dominate and Bebe - who replaced Powell at the break- fired hard and low to force a good save from Qiu.

United did however take the lead when Bebe beat his man with ease on the left before playing in Japan international Kagawa whose effort deflected past Qiu for what would prove to be the match-winner.

The former Chelsea star missed a public training session on Tuesday, and Batista said he would make a final decision on Drogba's inclusion in the squad nearer to the game.

"Right now we can't say for sure because he has a back problem. We will see tomorrow," Batista said.

The Cote d'Ivoire star made his debut in China last weekend, coming on as a second-half substitute to set up his side's equaliser in a 1-1 draw away to Guangzhou R&F.

The highly-anticipated clash with United could see Drogba reunited with former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka for the first time since the pair left the English Premier League.

Drogba joined Shenhua in June on a two-and-a-half year contract reported to be worth around £200,000 pounds ($303,634) a week.

Batista suggested he may choose a second-string squad to play against Sir Alex Ferguson's men, saying he would rest key players in preparation for Shenhua's clash away to league leader Guangzhou Evergrande this weekend.

"Even though its just a commercial game we will still prepare for it seriously. But for us, the domestic championship is more important," the former Argentina coach said.

United players also appeared at the public training session and were watched by a cheering crowd of several hundred red-shirted Chinese fans.

Shenhua takes on the Red Devils at the 80,000 capacity Shanghai Stadium.

After eight years at Stamford Bridge, the Ivory Coast star signed for Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua for a reported STG200,000 ($A303,500) a week, making him the highest-paid player in China and in the top bracket globally.

Ferguson, speaking in Shanghai on Monday ahead of a friendly against Drogba's new team on Wednesday, said he may have pursued the 34-year-old if Drogba had decided against going overseas.

Asked if he was ever interested in Drogba joining the Red Devils, Ferguson said: "I think that the decision was his anyway because he said he was going to leave Chelsea and not play in the English league - that eliminated everyone. I could have been."

Drogba decided to join his old Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka at Shanghai, saying he wanted a "new challenge" outside of England's top flight.

He made an instant impact on his debut in the Chinese Super League, setting up his team's equaliser in a 1-1 draw away to Guangzhou R&F on Sunday (Monday AEST).

United and former England defender Rio Ferdinand said Shanghai will face a test of how much it has developed with its new signings when the teams meet.

"I'm looking forward to it. Obviously there's been a lot of excitement and press coverage about Didier and Anelka coming to Shanghai so it's a great game for both clubs," Ferdinand said.

"Shanghai gets to see where they are at, and obviously at this stage it's our pre-season and the main focus for us is to get to another stage of fitness and get through the game unscathed by injuries."

It is Drogba's first week on the job at his new club after the much trumpeted switch from Chelsea for the UEFA Champions League winner.

Back in full time training after 10 weeks out with a knee injury, Griffiths lined up for a striker's only shooting session with the $300,000-a-week Cote d'Ivoire skipper and Shenhua's other resident superstar, Frenchman Nicolas Anelka.

"I trained with Drogba and Anelka in a shooting drills session on Tuesday and it was just a surreal experience," Griffiths told The World Game.

"I was looking around and thinking to myself 'what the hell is happening here!'

"They are both really good people, really down to earth and I just want to learn as much as I can from both of them."

Griffiths is convinced a Drogba-led revival can haul Shanghai, which lies 12th in the 16-team Chinese Super League, back up the ladder.

"Drogba is simply a beast," Griffiths said.

"He was the arguably the best striker in the world last season and I have to settle down and stop looking up at him like a kid does to an idol and try and just treat him like another footballer.

"You often find the people who play at his level don't have a huge ego, when you think maybe they would, or they should.

"He is calm and very humble and always willing to listen.

"He's already quizzed me a little on life here because I've been in China for a while now and once he gets in the team playing things are going to turn around pretty fast on the field for this club."

After so long out, 32-year-old Griffiths knows it will be hard for him to break back into the starting line-up for Sunday's league clash against Guangzhou R&F – a game in which Drogba may feature despite not having kicked a ball in anger since May.

Shanghai also faces Changchun Yatai in the FA Cup tonight.

"The new coach Sergio Batista really hasn't seen much of me since the injury," Griffiths said.

"Nicolas Anelka is keen for me to play alongside Drogba as a second striker, which would allow him to play a little deeper, but I feel the coach will want to use me either on the left or right wing to accommodate Didier and Nico.

"I can hardly complain about that because everybody knows what great players they are.

"It's obviously down to the coach to make that decision and I just have to ease back into things and see what happens.

"Realistically, using me off the bench will probably be the right option, considering how long I have been out."

According to Griffiths, Drogba belies his 34 years with the sheer power and movement, which still resonates from his game.

"He's moving freely and with great purpose and once he gets fully fit and gets in alongside Nico it's going to be very hard for any team to stop them," Griffiths declared.

"We won't win the championship this year but if this team stays together next year, then watch out."

For all the hype surrounding Drogba, Griffiths claims the clubs less hyped signing, Colombia international Giovanni Moreno, is "probably the best player" in China.

"He's our playmaker and is just an incredible talent," he said of the 25-year-old.

Griffiths also revealed that the trickle of 30-something stars to China could turn into a flood.

"Anelka has been saying that half the French team want to come here now," Griffiths said.

"And with the way things are financially in Europe right now this is becoming football's new frontier."

Hundreds of fans, many clad in 'Drogba 11' shirts, greeted the former Chelsea star at Shanghai's Pudong airport on Saturday, some carrying bouquets of flowers and others brandishing his name in English on placards.

"Let me tell you something, now we have Drogba, Shanghai is not a common city anymore, Shanghai is a world mega-city now," one fan, Lu Xiaobo, said after Drogba walked past the crowd, signing autographs and shaking hands.

The 34-year-old has signed with Shanghai Shenhua on a deal that Chinese and British media have said is worth £200,000 ($304,571) a week, which would make him the highest-paid player in China and in the top bracket globally.

He is the latest in a fast-growing number of foreign stars to have been lured to China on enormous salaries that are typically funded by Chinese business titans.

Drogba will join French striker Nicolas Anelka, who signed with Shenhua in January on a deal believed to be nearly as high.

The fearsome strikers will work under former Argentine coach Sergio Batista, who joined the club in May. Shenhua is bankrolled by high-profile video-game tycoon Zhu Jun.

In the far south of the country, World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi is at the helm of ladder-leading Guangzhou Evergrande, and Nigerian striker Ayegbeni Yakubu has just signed with cross-town rival Guangzhou R&F.

Shanghai Shenhua took on Beijing Guoan on Saturday night at home in what is regarded as one of the biggest fixtures on the Chinese domestic football calendar.

Drogba was expected to appear on the pitch to greet fans. He was also due to hold a press conference on Saturday afternoon.

Drogba will likely play his first game for his new side next week when Shenhua plays Changchun away in the Chinese FA Cup, according to local press reports.

He and Anelka face an uphill battle to redeem their new club's season. Halfway through, Shanghai Shenhua sits just one point off the bottom of the 16-club Chinese Super League.

Drogba may be approaching the twilight of his career but he showed he is still a lethal striker with a match-winning role for Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League final in May.

The imposing target man said when the Shanghai deal was signed last month that he was excited about heading to China.

"I am looking forward to a new challenge and to experiencing a new culture, and I am excited about the new developments in the Chinese Super League," he said.

"I (also) hope to help promote Chinese football around the world and further improve the links between China and Africa."

Drogba scored 157 goals in 341 appearances for Chelsea after moving from Marseille in 2004.

The Chinese Football Association believes the domestic game, which has endured years of corruption and repeated failures by the national team, is set to take off thanks to the infusion of expensive talent such as Drogba.

"The high-level world-class players and coaches will be able to provide a learning opportunity to our domestic players and coaches," Chinese Football Association spokesman Dong Hua said.

"I hope our coaches and players can improve through this exchange and enhance the level of Chinese football as a whole."

But critics say the money is being wasted, with the foreigners sometimes getting paid more than the salaries of the rest of the players combined, while grassroots football is being ignored.

Drogba announced last month he had signed with the big-spending club until 2014, joining his former Chelsea teammate Nicolas Anelka who started with the team in January.

The striker will arrive on Saturday morning and meet fans at a match against third-ranked Beijing Guoan that evening. A Shenhua official revealed that Drogba would not play however.

Shenhua has an away game against Guangzhou Fuli on July 21 but there is speculation Drogba might only take to the field for the first time in a friendly match against Manchester United on July 25.

Shenhua is reportedly paying $A314,000 a week to Drogba, 34, who is fresh from leading Chelsea to its long-awaited victory in the Champions League.

Despite having Anelka, Shenhua won just three matches out of 16 in the Chinese Super League, which has 16 clubs.

Shenhua is one of several Chinese clubs to have gone on a spending spree on foreign players and managers in a bid to raise its game, as the league attempts to shrug off years of damaging corruption scandals.

After a poor start to the season, however, Shenhua sacked French coach Jean Tigana and replaced him with former Argentina national manager Sergio Batista, after briefly naming Anelka as "player-coach".

Batista said shortly after Drogba's signing was announced that he was hopeful Shenhua could climb into the top three by season's end in November.

Griffiths, who was player of the year and golden boot with 12 goals as Newcastle won the title in 2008, is enduring a frustrating fourth year in China with new club Shanghai Shenhua – the home of Didier Drogba – which is in free-fall.

To make matters worse, Griffiths has been plagued by a niggling knee injury and hasn't played for two months.

He joined big-spending Shanghai, which also snared brooding Frenchman Nicolas Anelka pre season, after three successful years at high flying Beijing Guoan.

Griffiths has been linked with a return to his former stomping ground in China but insists he is unlikely to be going anywhere until his contract expires in December, with the A-League foremost in his thinking beyond that.

"Returning to Australia at the end of my contract is definitely a strong possibility," Griffiths said. "My wife and I have talked about it lately and it’s certainly on the cards.

"I have been in China four years year and it's been a great adventure but it’s a long time and I am more than open to the prospect of coming home.

"I've said I want to return to Australia at some stage with my family and I can see a move happening sooner rather than later.

"If it happens, the Jets would be my first choice. Hopefully the fact I'm a proven scorer, somebody who can get maybe 10 a season, would work in my favour and make me attractive to teams."

Still a cult figure at the Jets, Griffiths, who turns 33 next month, still believes he has plenty to offer prospective suitors.

"Obviously I can also play on the right wing, which I have been doing with Shanghai in the games I've played so far this season, not that's its necessarily my preference," he said.

"My body feels good, I'm in good shape overall. I do quite a bit of pilates and have never had any major injuries. Touch wood, I will hopefully to able to play at a good level for another three or four years.

"I am back in training with Shanghai and I am keen to get back playing as soon as I can. That said, it makes no sense to rush things and risk setting myself back.

"Things happen for a reason and I will stay positive and bide my time. It's not serious, it's more of a niggle."

Sidelined for two months with fluid on his left knee, Griffiths – who has scored twice in seven appearances this season – remains a figure of frustration as Shanghai slumps in the Chinese Super League. The club is only two spots above the drop zone, with just 15 points and 11 goals from 14 games this season.

Drogba, not due in China until mid July, is walking in a potential hornets nest in Shanghai, according to Griffiths.

"It's pretty scary over here right now and the club's in a bit of turmoil," he said.

"Nic Anelka even got attacked by one of our on fans after the game at the weekend. That's crazy stuff."

It was reported in Spain that Cote d'Ivoire captain Drogba, who last week announced he would be joining Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua, was due in Barcelona for talks with the Nou Camp outfit.

However, when asked about that this afternoon, Rosell said: "I don't know anything of Drogba. If he's here he's come on holiday or for something personal. It's nothing to do with Barcelona."

Meanwhile, Drogba's representative Sports PR Company earlier sent a tweet saying: "Drogba to Barca story complete nonsense. As we told you he joins Shanghai in July."

The 34-year-old Drogba, who confirmed his intention to leave Chelsea after the UEFA Champions League final victory over Bayern Munich, announced last Wednesday he had signed a two-and-a-half year deal with Shanghai Shenhua.

New Barca coach Tito Vilanova also said at his presentation earlier this month that the club was not looking to bring in attacking reinforcements, with its main focus being on strengthening the defence.

Barca has been closely linked with Valencia full-back Jordi Alba and Athletic Bilbao's Javi Martinez, but Rosell was giving little away when quizzed about the two Spain internationals at his press conference.

"I don't like that these negotiations are public, but they already are. Having said that, the value of Jordi Alba will be what we are ready to pay," he said.

"Its down to the coaching team. In any case, if we had an interest in Javi Martinez, I wouldn't say so

"If we didn't have any interest, I wouldn't say so either. I like negotiations to take place with prudence and in secret."

The 34-year-old announced on his official website that he has signed a two-and-a-half year deal.

"Today I can inform you that I have signed with Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua FC for a two-and-a-half year deal (until the end of 2014)," he said.

"I will fly out to join up with the squad in July.

"I have considered all the offers I have received in the past few weeks, but I feel that Shanghai Shenhua FC is the right move for me at this time.

"I am looking forward to a new challenge and to experiencing a new culture, and I am excited about the new developments in the Chinese Super League.

"When Chelsea went to China last year, we had a great time and I met some amazing fans.

"I hope to help promote Chinese football around the world and further improve the links between China and Africa."

Drogba finished his Chelsea career in May by helping it beat Bayern Munich to win the UEFA Champions League. He spent eight years at Chelsea, scoring 157 goals in 341 appearances and helping the Blues to 10 titles.

He is the latest and most prestigious coup by the ambitious Shanghai club, after former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka.

Shanghai currently sits 12th in the 16-team Chinese Super League.

Sidelined for nearly two months with a knee injury, Griffiths is set to return for Sunday's Chinese Super League clash against Mile Sterjovski's Dalian Aerbin as former Chelsea talisman Drogba prepares to confirm his switch to Shanghai on a two-and-a half year deal rumoured to be worth a bank-busting $38 million.

Drogba's former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka is also at the club but has had a tough time of it after being stripped of the role of player-coach to accommodate the arrival of Argentine mentor Sergio Batista last month.

An expectant Griffiths, signed from Beijing Gouan on a one-year deal at the end of last season, can't wait to link-up with UEFA Champions League winner Drogba.

"It looks like he is coming and for me it would be a dream come true to play alongside him," Griffiths told The World Game.

"We're expecting to see him here in the next week or so. The club has pretty much confirmed that and there's a real feeling of excitement about the place.

"When I joined the team the chance to play with Anelka was great but because of the injury that's not really been the case. With Didier Drogba now signing the scenario is even more amazing."

With Shanghai, backed up by the fortune of its flamboyant owner Zhu Jun, languishing 11th in the 16-team competition, Griffiths is keen to help end his - and the club's - season of angst.

"Being out for so long has been a huge source of frustration for me," the 32-year-old said.

"I've pretty much just watched the team struggle under three coaches (Jean Tigana, Anelka and Batista) and now I'm finally ready to return and hopefully I can do my bit to turn the tide a little.

"There's been a lot of rehab for the knee, which I badly twisted. Fingers crossed I get through the week at training and get back on the pitch because we have been struggling big time.

"On a personal level, I've never been out this long before."

The former Newcastle Jets striker has struck twice in his seven appearances for Shanghai this season.

"If the team was doing well I would expect to come off the bench this weekend but the way things are it wouldn't surprise me if I started the game," he said.

Griffiths has been playing the off-field diplomat by trying to ease the tensions between the brooding Anelka - currently out injured - and club bosses who stripped him of the player-coaching role to accommodate the arrival of Batista.

"I am not sure what is happening with Nicolas. I try and get in his ear as much as possible at training and encourage him to stay on and have a few more games with us. But who knows what will happen there," Griffiths said.

"I have done my best to help the new arrivals to adapt here in China where things can be difficult and I've done that as best I can with Nicolas. We get on quite well and I've tried to answer a lot of questions he has had.

"It's a delicate situation and it's going to be difficult to fix because he's obviously unhappy at not being the coach anymore after only four weeks in the role.

"Hopefully though, we can get him back on the field."

Reports say Drogba, who left Chelsea after helping it win the UEFA Champions League final against Bayern Munich last month, is set to join the Chinese Super League club.

According to the official Oriental Morning Post, the two sides have already reached agreement 'in principle' for a two-and-a-half-year contract.

The proposed salary would exceed the pay of Drogba's former Chelsea team-mate and Shenhua's current top player Nicolas Anelka, who is reported to be receiving 200,000 euros ($249,178) a week, it said.

Shenhua declined to comment on Monday, and an official said Drogba would make the announcement himself if he decided to sign.

The Cote d'Ivoire star said on Sunday that information about his future was due shortly but he sidestepped questions as to whether he would link up with Shenhua.

"The next step is interesting," the 34-year-old said during a visit to New Delhi.

The earliest Drogba could arrive in Shanghai to begin playing for the club is early July, the report said.

It added that the proposed deal includes Drogba becoming a spokesman for a Chinese online gaming company, in a similar arrangement to French striker Anelka, who joined Shenhua in January.

Anelka was paid US$3.4 million ($3.36 million) to endorse an online game developed by internet company The9, whose chairman Zhu Jun is also the chief investor in Shenhua.

Under the terms of the possible deal with Drogba, Shenhua would also participate in charitable projects, possibly involving a hospital that he is having built in his native country, the newspaper said.

Drogba is active in charitable causes through his foundation, which seeks to provide support in health and education to African people.

Shenhua, now 12th in the 16-club league, has struggled despite bringing in Anelka and head coach Jean Tigana, who was later sacked and replaced with former Argentina boss Sergio Batista.

The Chinese Super League club has reportedly been in talks for months with Cote d'Ivoire's Drogba, who would join his former Chelsea team-mate striker Nicolas Anelka if the deal goes through.

"A top Shenhua official has left for the final round of negotiations to sign star striker Didier Drogba," the report said.

The newspaper said Shenhua board member Zhou Jun would hold direct talks with the 34-year-old player.

Shenhua's new manager Sergio Batista boosted hopes Drogba might join the club.

"The possibility of Drogba coming is still relatively large," Batista told a news conference.

"I believe the club's management is still in contact with Drogba."

Shenhua declined to comment on Friday.

Drogba left Chelsea after helping the English Premier League club to its first ever UEFA Champions League triumph last month.

Former Argentina manager Batista joined Shenhua, which is sitting ninth in the 16-club Chinese league, late last month after the club sacked French coach Jean Tigana and temporarily made Anelka player-coach.

The game against the side that already has Nicolas Anelka in its squad and is trying to sign Didier Drogba, will be part of two matches United play in China during its pre-season programme.

The fixture was announced today as part of the five-year partnership with US car giant Chevrolet.

The 34-year-old helped the Blues win the UEFA Champions League in Munich to bring the curtain down on a trophy-laden spell in west London.

Cote d'Ivoire captain Drogba - signed from Marseille in 2004 - is now expected to join up with former Blues team-mate Nicolas Anelka at the Chinese Super League club on what would be a lucrative free transfer.

"The people from the club are doing the best things to get Drogba here," newly appointed Shanghai manager Sergio Batista told reporters.

"I think every coach in the world wants to get Drogba on the team and I hope everything is okay."

Former Argentina manager Batista maintained there was no issue with Anelka, who had taken temporary charge as player-coach after former manager Jean Tigana was sacked in April.

"It's another moment. He's a player. I'm open to hear Anelka and all the players on the team speak about what's happening on the field," Batista, 49, said.

"Obviously, the final decision is from the coach.

"Anelka can give to all the players his experience, on the field and off the field.

"I don't want Anelka to play only to score goals. He is one of the best players in the world, but I want to keep him back on the field to play with his partners on the team."

Batista was introduced as the club's new coach at a news conference on Wednesday and will begin work with the team on Friday. His first game in charge is Sunday - a friendly against South African club Moroka Swallows.

He will coach his first league game for Shenhua on 16 June after the league's three-week break.

The club said a news conference is scheduled for Wednesday to introduce its new coach. No other details were given on the club's website.

Batista has been in China since Friday and met on Monday with Shenhua's star signing, former Chelsea player Nicolas Anelka, who has been leading a five-man coaching line-up since the departure of Jean Tigana of France last month.

Chinese teams have recently been emerging from years of poor management and match fixing scandals to spend big on foreign coaches and players.

Among the recent signings, Marcello Lippi was hired earlier this month to coach big-spending Chinese Super League team Guangzhou Evergrande.

Batista, who led Argentina to Olympic gold in 2008, looks set to take the hot seat vacated by Frenchman Jean Tigana, who was sacked last month by the ambitious Chinese Super League club.

"He arrived this morning," a club official told AFP, but declined to say when Batista would take over and he is yet to formally sign a contract.

The Argentine is however expected to be in place after observing Sunday's match between struggling Shenhua and fifth-placed Guizhou Renhe, the Oriental Sports Daily wrote.

Batista touched down in Shanghai with several assistant coaches and Shenhua fans greeted him at the airport, the Xinmin Evening news reported.

Star French striker Anelka has been acting as player-coach while Jean-Florent Ikwange Ibenge - a former DR Congo national manager - served as acting head coach after Tigana's bitter departure.

The appointment of a new head coach has apparently upset Anelka, who in an interview with a Chinese newspaper threatened to quit, but on Thursday blamed a lack of communication and said he would stay.

Anelka, the most high-profile foreign footballer to sign for the Chinese league, joined Shenhua in January on a two-year contract for a reported salary of $307,000 a week.

Shenhua is also seeking to snap up Anelka's former Chelsea team-mate Didier Drogba, fresh from his UEFA Champions League triumph.

Anelka blamed a communications breakdown after a Chinese newspaper said he was on the verge of walking out over plans over to hire a new manager.

His latest comments come after Shenhua's owner, video-game magnate Zhu Jun, reportedly demanded an explanation from Anelka and threatened a $70,000 fine.

"This matter is perhaps caused by problems in some aspects of communication," Anelka told a press conference. "I will stay with the club."

Chinese media have said Anelka was unhappy with Shenhua's bid to bring in Argentina's Sergio Daniel Batista as a replacement for French manager Jean Tigana, who was sacked last month.

Anelka, who joined Shenhua in January on a two-year contract reportedly paying 234,000 euros ($307,000) a week, was named as player-coach after Tigana's dismissal, and had appeared to relish the role.

The well-travelled striker has also openly spoken of his desire for Drogba to join him in Shanghai, but he said he had not had any recent contact with the Ivorian international.

Drogba announced his departure from Chelsea this week, just days after scoring the equaliser and the winning penalty in the European Champions League final against Bayern Munich.

But a club official, who declined to be named, confirmed that Shenhua were trying to sign Drogba, extending a process which has been going on since at least January.

"We are still making efforts (in negotiations with Drogba)," the official told AFP.

Anelka added that he will miss Shenhua's next game after amassing four yellow cards. Shenhua, lying 14th in the 16-club Chinese Super League, will meet fifth-placed Guizhou Renhe this weekend.

Anelka is the most high-profile player to join the Super League. Rival club Guangzhou Evergrande signed Italian World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi last week, underlining Chinese football's growing financial clout.

Shenhua, bankrolled by colourful video-game mogul Zhu Jun, signed Drogba's ex-Chelsea teammate Nicolas Anelka in December and it has been in talks with the Ivory Coast international since at least January.

"As of now, Shenhua's negotiations with Drogba are continuing just as planned," Zhu told the Oriental Sports Daily.

Drogba, 34, revealed on Tuesday he was quitting English Premier League giant Chelsea, just days after his match-winning performance in the UEFA Champions League final against Bayern Munich.

Drogba scored a late equaliser as well as the decisive spot-kick in the penalty shoot-out.

Since joining Chelsea from Marseille in 2004, he has tallied 157 goals in 341 appearances, helping the club win 10 trophies.

"It has been a very difficult decision for me to make and I am very proud of what we have achieved, but the time is right for a new challenge for me," he told Chelsea's website.

Drogba would be the latest star signing for China's increasingly big-spending Super League, after World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi joined Guangzhou Evergrande last week.

But Anelka's move has not been without its problems. Last week, he threatened to quit Shenhua over the club's plans to hire a new head coach, according to local media.

"If there is still no one to support me and (they) continue to play little tricks behind my back ... then I will quickly decide whether or not to retire," the Frenchman told Xinmin Evening News.

Club owner Zhu has written to Anelka's agent and lawyer asking for an explanation, the Oriental Sports Daily said.

In April, Shenhua sacked French coach Jean Tigana, then the highest-profile manager to work in China, after just a handful of games and replaced him with a makeshift set-up including Anelka as player-coach.

It is now tipped to be targeting Sergio Daniel Batista, who led Argentina to Olympic gold in 2008, as the new manager.

Drogba is one of the Premier League's most successful strikers and he departs Chelsea as its fourth all-time highest scorer.

His 34 goals in European competition is a club record by 10 goals.

During his eight seasons at Stamford Bridge, he won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups and the Champions League title.

There was no immediate comment from Shenhua about British reports that Anelka's former team-mate Didier Drogba, fresh from his Champion's League triumph with Chelsea, is set to join the side.

Former Argentina manager Sergio Daniel Batista has been tipped for the coach's job, and Shenhua's star player Anelka is said to be threatening to quit the club in response, according to reports.

"The club has actively sought a head coach candidate, and is looking for him to take up the post and assume command soon," the club said in a statement.

The impending arrival of a new head coach has sparked a public outburst by the striker, who told local media that he was considering leaving.

Anelka is serving dual roles for Shenhua, although the club also named former DR Congo national manager Jean-Florent Ikwange Ibenge as acting head coach after sacking Frenchman Jean Tigana last month.

The Shenhua statement added the club "hopes he (Anelka) will help the new coaching group to quickly become acquainted with the state of the team without delay".

The Shanghai Daily newspaper reported Shenhua was close to signing Batista, who led Argentina to the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

Speaking in an interview with the Xinmin Evening News published on Monday, Anelka criticised a lack of support from the club and said he would find it difficult to accept someone taking over his coaching duties.

"If there is still no one to support me and (they) continue to play little tricks behind my back... then I will quickly decide whether or not to retire," he said, in comments published in Chinese.

Anelka, the most high-profile foreign footballer to sign for the Chinese league, joined Shenhua in January on a two-year contract for a reported salary of 234,000 euros ($A307,000) a week.

Shenhua could not be reached for comment.

Drogba has been widely rumoured to be quitting Chelsea for Shenhua to join Anelka, his former team-mate at the London club.

Anelka, player-coach of Shenhua, previously expressed hopes that the 34-year-old forward could join him in a lucrative move to Shanghai.

Anelka confirmed he had spoken to Drogba and the Ivory Coast international had reached a decision over his future.

"Even if Drogba finally chooses to stay with Chelsea, that can only prove Drogba himself wanted to stay and Chelsea also wanted to keep him," Anelka said, as quoted by Shanghai internet portal www.online.sh.cn.

"If Drogba cannot come to Shanghai, then there are no regrets because the world still has many other fine players," said Anelka, 33, according to a transcript of a news conference.

The former French international joined the Chinese Super League side in January and was named player-coach shortly before Shenhua sacked French head coach Jean Tigana last month, after a poor start to the season.

Confusion still surrounds Anelka's exact position with the club, with the future of manager Jean Tigana unclear.

It was reported that Tigana had either been sacked or resigned from the post, but the Frenchman has denied all such stories.

Regardless of Anelka`s job title, Shenhua, who has long been linked with Drogba, whose Chelsea contract expires this summer, will hope he can convince his old strike partner to sign a lucrative deal in the Far East.

Anelka also wants to recruit former Paris St Germain team-mate Selim Benachour, currently with Maritimo.

"I hope Selim Benachour and Didier Drogba will quickly join us," Anelka told Le Journal du Dimanche.

"I hope they come. It is up to the club to see if we have the right means."

Anelka admitted his surprise at being appointed to the coaching staff, but insisted he had no qualms about taking over from Tigana.

"I don't know what happened with the coach, but it looked like an impasse," he added.

"As usual I will take on and try to seize the challenge, which is the greatest of my career. We start almost from scratch again.

"Florent Ibenge will take the daily training sessions. To assist us there will be Alioune Toure and Ian Walker for the keepers."

Anelka revealed he had a "very English coaching philosophy".

"I have been impressed by Carlo Ancelotti, Kevin Keegan, Arsene Wenger, Guus Hiddink, Christoph Daum and Sam Allardyce," he said.

"I have also looked at Alex Ferguson and Harry Redknapp. I have a very English coaching philosophy."

Shenhua has won just one of its opening five games in the Chinese Super League, leading to speculation Tigana may be sacked.

Instead, the club has reshuffled its backroom staff, adding former Real Madrid and Chelsea striker Anelka.

A club statement read: "Due to the team's recent record which has not met the expectations and demands of the club's fans, media and other parties and the fact the foreign players are in urgent need of high-quality training the club has made the decision to replace some members of the coaching staff.

"The club will introduce four coaches from the United Kingdom and France to join the coaching staff to provide the necessary training support to ensure the competitive state of the players.

"In addition, the team captain Nicolas Anelka will coach and participate in the team's daily training management."

Anelka, 33, joined Shenhua in January after four years at Chelsea.

The former Manchester City and Arsenal striker's debut was eagerly anticipated after he signed a two-year contract worth 270,000 euros ($335,595) a week for the Chinese Super League side.

However, the French player's name was absent from the team sheet for Shenhua's opening clash against regional rival Jiangsu Sainty of Nanjing.

Anelka's place was taken by Australia striker Joel Griffiths. The former Beijing Guoan hitman proved his worth by scoring the equaliser in the 60th minute with a close-range header, with the match ending 1-1.

Jiangsu's Romanian Striker Cristian Danalache had given his side the lead in the 15th minute.

If fit, Anelka faces a baptism of fire in Shenhua's next match - an away fixture to fierce rival Beijing Guoan.

The deal, expected to be signed soon, would see Manset play alongside Nicolas Anelka, who arrived in China last week to play for Shenhua - the most high-profile foreign footballer ever to sign for the Chinese league.

Manset, 22, is currently on the books of Championship club Reading and will reportedly be loaned to Shenhua for six months.

The short-term contract is designed to give Manset a chance to play in the English Premier League next season, the official Shanghai Daily newspaper quoted a Shenhua official as saying.

The Shanghai club declined to comment on Tuesday.

Shenhua has already signed up four other foreign players, including former Chelsea striker Anelka.

The others are Joel Griffiths, Brazilian Moises Moura Pinheiro and Serbian national Mario Bozic, according to Shenhua.

Anelka has also expressed hopes that his former team-mate, Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, will join him at Shenhua but he said it would be up to management. Shenhua has confirmed it is in talks with Drogba.

The former Chelsea striker - the Chinese league's most high-profile signing to date - follows in the footsteps of a slew of foreign imports to China including Paul Gascoigne, Hamilton Ricard, Carsten Jacker and Paul Rideout.

But few have lasted more than a few seasons. Some have not even made it through one - New Zealand and Perth Glory striker Shane Smeltz lasted just a day before deciding the northern industrial city of Jinan and its team, Shandong Luneng, were not for him.

"I like the mentality in China and in Asia. I had other offers, but that is why I chose to come here," Anelka told journalists at a packed news conference on Thursday.

"Chinese football is very new for me, I have not yet been able to assess it because I haven't played any Chinese teams. I hope that I can give some positive ideas to the other players."

Anelka - who is reportedly earning up to 234,000 euros ($286,748) a week at Shanghai Shenhua - does not have long to acclimatise, with the start of the Chinese Super League less than a month away.

Ireland's Don O'Riordan, head coach of Chinese second division side Beijing Baxy's women's team, says the Frenchman's status as a top professional will quickly rub off on his new team-mates.

"For the Chinese players at Shanghai to get the opportunity to train and play with someone like Anelka who has been coached by some of the top coaches in world football is a fantastic chance," says O'Riordan.

"He will always train properly, giving 100 percent every time, and show the professional way of doing things to those who are willing to listen, watch and learn."

It is too early to tell how English football's famous misfit, nicknamed 'Le Sulk' for his attitude, will adapt to his new life in China's commercial capital.

Wing Chan, director of residential services at CB Richard Ellis Shanghai, believes the 32-year-old may face the toughest challenge off the pitch.

Wing, who helps newly arrived multinational executives and their families settle in Shanghai, says much will depend on whether Anelka brings his wife and two sons with him to the city.

"Shanghai looks modern on the outside, but underneath it's different - things like the housemaid using the same cloth to clean the floor and the dishes is just one little issue which might rankle," she says.

In his first few days, Anelka has been fiercely protected by Shenhua, which did not even disclose the date of his arrival to ensure he would not be mobbed by fans at the airport, as has happened to foreign players in the past.

For now, the player is staying in The Peninsula - one of Shanghai's swankiest five-star hotels.

Shenhua says he will move into a luxury private villa but has not revealed its location.

Chan points out that Anelka will have the added pressure of public attention on top of dealing with all the usual issues faced by expats moving to China.

"Children are relatively easy to keep happy after a relocation, but it's the spouse who is usually the problem," she said.

Even for players who travel solo, China can be tough - Gascoigne moved to China in 2002 but stayed for just a few months in the remote and notoriously polluted western city of Lanzhou.

In his autobiography, the troubled former England star recalls how the eight-hour time difference made it difficult to speak to his friends in Britain.

Unable to speak the language, Gascoigne grew so bored and restless he decided to try to fish for carp using Jammie Dodgers - a well-known British biscuit - as bait.

The busy, cosmopolitan city of Shanghai, with its designer shops and top-class restaurants, is a far cry from Lanzhou.

Jorg Albertz, a former German international and once of Rangers, lasted two years with Shenhua, and says he enjoyed his time in the city.

But his stint coincided with a major corruption scandal in China's football league, and he recently told the BBC he suspected some games he played in were fixed for gambling purposes.

"I kept my mouth shut and made the decision to leave the country," he said.

"At the end of the day, if you are giving 100 percent for your club and you know maybe there are some players who are not performing that well ... you want to have success."

Nevertheless, many members of Shenhua's Blue Devils supporters group still wear shirts bearing Albertz's name, after he helped the club to win its last championship in 2003.

Anelka can expect a wild and frenzied welcome from the Blue Devils, who model themselves on the 'ultras' of Spain and Italy, but not all fans are prepared to offer unreserved support.

"I'm worried if he can see out his two-year contract, as we know he has a reputation for being arrogant and having a bad temper," says Ben Li, a 27-year-old Blue Devil.

"I'm not sure why he chose to continue his career in China; if his team-mates can't cooperate with him and offer him enough support, he might become frustrated and want to leave."

Anelka was presented on Thursday as the latest new signing for the ambitious Chinese club, which has also been heavily linked with a big-money move for Drogba.

Anelka said: "I don't want to say too much, but I expect Drogba to come."

Sections of the British media have reported that Shenhua is ready to pay the 33-year-old Drogba a weekly salary of STG270,000 ($A400,000), making him one of the highest-earning players in world football.

Drogba's contract at Chelsea, where he has played since 2004, expires at the end of the season.

The 32-year-old former Chelsea striker posed for a photo with an immigration official at the city's airport before being whisked through security to a special VIP exit, the state-backed media website Eastday said.

China's legion of football fans are hoping the French international will not only boost Shenhua, which finished in the bottom half of the table last season, but also raise the standard of play in the country's scandal-hit Super League.

"Anelka finally came to Shenhua. My dream has finally come true," said one fan, Danni, on his microblog. "The Shenhua club's performance will definitely be worth watching this year."

Anelka was taken to the luxury Peninsula hotel, where he had breakfast in the lobby lounge while listening to music on his headphones, staff members said.

A Shenhua official confirmed his arrival to AFP. The club's players arrived back in Shanghai on Wednesday after training in Spain.

The season starts in March, but Shenhua has not announced specific dates.

Some fans, however, were pessimistic about the ability of one player to lift Shenhua to the top.

"Shenhua's defence is rotten. Just depending on Anelka to win the championship is dreaming," one said.

Anelka's arrival comes a year after a major crackdown on widespread match-fixing that left senior officials facing jail and severely damaged the reputation of China's Super League.

He is due to meet fans at an event on Thursday, when he will launch a new online game for a Chinese company headed by Shenhua's major shareholder - a commercial endorsement which will net him 2.7 million euros ($3.28 million).

The Chinese club has declined to say how much Anelka will earn for his two-year contract with the team.

Shenhua, 11th in the Chinese league last season, is the latest stop on Anelka's nomadic career, which has also taken in Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Manchester City, Bolton Wanderers and Turkey's Fenerbahce.

Drogba, who rejected a one-year contract extension at Stamford Bridge after demanding a two-year deal, has been linked with a move to China for some time.

Dalian Aerbin reportedly offered the 33-year-old wages of £200,000 a week (AUD $326,000) but their Chinese Super League rival now appears to be in pole position.

A Shenhua spokesman was quoted today as saying talks have been taking place, and Shenhua owner Zhu Jun cryptically spoke of the pursuit on the Chinese equivalent of Twitter, saying: "It's like flirting with a girl. Perhaps she will resist you at first, but if you continue to ask her out, it always ends well. Never give up."

Board member Zhou Jun told Shanghai Daily: "Everything is going well so far, though there have been a few obstacles.

"It's like making a blockbuster film. When superstars like Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Zhou Xun have confirmed their participation, other actors and actress will be confident of the movie."

Anelka last month became one of the biggest names ever to move to Chinese football when he signed for Shenhua on a reported £200,000-a-week deal.

Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas has been hopeful of Drogba, who is currently on African Nations Cup duty with Cote d'Ivoire, seeing out the remainder of his contract.

He is currently free to open negotiations with rival clubs over a summer move but, should an offer for him be made before the transfer window closes, the Blues must decide whether to cash in.

Griffiths, who became a fan hero at Beijing Guoan over the past three seasons, said he could not ignore the lure of a cashed-up club that has signed Nicolas Anelka, snared Jean Tigana as its coach and been linked with a swoop for ex-Germany skipper Michael Ballack.

"I'm a bit gutted to be leaving such a great club as Beijing whose fans I’ve had an excellent rapport with,” Griffiths said.

"I was offered a contract which would have made me the highest paid foreigner ever there.

"Beijing have been in constant touch with me and only yesterday were still hoping that I’d re-sign and I have huge respect for them.

"It’s been a very difficult decision in many ways because I was really happy there.

"But I had to accept what Shanghai came up with because it will help set my family up. Football is a short career and I am in the twilight, so to speak, at the age of 32."

“It really annoys me when people go on about loyalty. I am a loyal person.

"But what would they do in a similar situation where you can triple your salary?''

Former Chelsea forward Anelka has never worried about being tagged disloyal during a career that has taken him to Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Bolton and Manchester City.

His $300,000-a-week salary - the most lucrative ever contract in China and the 10th highest pay packet in world football - leaves Griffiths’s deal in the shade but the former Newcastle Jets marquee man is excited to be linking up with the famed Frenchman.

“I still have to undergo a medical when I return to China in mid-January but assuming all is well a one-year deal has been sorted out and the thought of playing in the same team as Nicolas Anelka is exciting,” Griffiths said.

"There’s a chance I might be a bit in awe of him initially but I can assure you I am not going there to clean his boots. The club has signed me for a good reason, as they have signed Nicolas for a reason.

“I watched him in the English Premier League for 10 years or so and have always been an admirer. It's a huge statement by the club to sign somebody of his stature and ability.''

"Hopefully he'll be a good bloke and we'll get on well, on and off the park," he said.

“He’s seen by some people as a little bit of a bad boy, which is appealing in some ways. Maybe there are a few similarities there between us.

“We can help each other. He's coming to a new place and I can maybe offer him some advice on how to deal with things in China while I'll be closely watching how he prepares and trains.

"You can’t beat experience and he has plenty of that. I’ll lap up all the advice he can offer me, that’s for sure.

“I think we’ll get on really well, or won’t hit it off at all!”

Anelka, who has been pushed out of the door at Chelsea links up with his new club early this month while Griffiths is due back in China on 15 January.

The A-League Golden Boot in 2008, Griffiths scored 11 times for Beijing last season and will compete with Argentine Luis Salmeron for a spot alongside Anelka up front.

Tigana has had a varied coaching career, starting off at French side Lyon in 1993.

After two years there, he moved on to Monaco where he led it to the French championship and Super Cup before moving to Fulham.

Tigana guided the west London side to promotion to the top flight but left Craven Cottage under a cloud in 2003.

A two-year spell from 2005-2007 at Besiktas followed before he returned to France and Bordeaux in 2010 to replace Laurent Blanc.

However, Tigana resigned after a home defeat in May 2011 by Sochaux, citing verbal abuse aimed at his teenage daughter.

Fellow Frenchman Nicolas Anelka will play under Tigana and is due to arrive in China next month after leaving Premier League side Chelsea.

French daily Le Parisien says Tigana is to sign a three-year contract.

Ambitious Shenhua said that the striker Anelka will join the club in January on a two-year contract from England's Chelsea.

They are reportedly also chasing Chelsea's Ivory Coast forward Didier Drogba.

Tigana has been out of coaching since resigning at Girondins Bordeaux in May.

The much-travelled marksman nicknamed 'Le Sulk' is an unlikely poster-boy.

But China's most high-profile recruit symbolises a new dawn for the country - and is the likely pioneer for an influx of well-known players.

Anelka's two-year deal with Shanghai Shenhua, which finished in the lower half of the table last season, comes just a year after the Super League's nadir when a major match-fixing crackdown left senior officials facing jail.

The corruption problems were so acute that when last season kicked off, state broadcaster CCTV refused to broadcast the matches and the league was without a major sponsor.

And yet in the space of just a few months, the Super League has cast off its woes with a series of big-money signings - funded largely by profits from a breakneck property boom - helping draw record crowds.

"The potential of Chinese football is, and always has been, massive. This is why we are seeing names like Anelka come to China," said Cameron Wilson, China-based founder of the wildeastfootball.net website.

"The long-term outlook for the sport here is bright."

The 32-year-old striker, who will complete his transfer next month for an undisclosed sum, is expected to be followed to Shanghai by French coach Jean Tigana and, if the club has its way, his Chelsea team-mate Didier Drogba.

But Anelka is not the first player lured by the mega-riches available in the Chinese league, with his weekly wages reportedly in the region of £200,000 ($309,511), although Shenhua disputes the figure.

In July, little-known Argentine Dario Conca smashed the Chinese record when he signed a US$10 million ($9.99 million) contract for Guangzhou Evergrande, which also splashed out US$7.5 million ($7.49 million) on Brazilian forwards Cleo and Muriqui.

The club, bankrolled by leading property firm Evergrande, was richly rewarded when it swept to the Super League title by 15 points - just two seasons after being relegated for match-fixing.

"The gold rush in Chinese football started in earnest in the summer when Guangzhou Evergrande (signed) Conca," Wilson told AFP.

"It was a massive signing in terms of prestige and it really made all the other clubs sit up and notice."

Conca was the catalyst for a sudden revival in the Super League's fortunes with a record 4.2 million fans clicking through turnstiles and the usual crowd trouble and scandal largely absent.

According to the Titan Sports Weekly, the renaissance followed government orders for real estate companies to front up the money for football clubs to bring in more foreign players.

"The nation's top leadership has ordered large-scale development for football, they have asked each company to invest at least 200 million yuan ($31.4 million)," Titan quoted an unnamed real estate mogul as saying.

"No matter if it is a foreign player or foreign coach, now we can move forward with this, and raise the overall level of the Super League."

For the new season starting in March, the average budget of each of the 16 Super League clubs will increase to about US$20 million ($19.98 million), the report said.

Shanghai's benefactor is colourful industrialist Zhu Jun, who tried to hire Argentina legend Diego Maradona as a coach and once said he had launched a bid for Liverpool, according to reports.

Meanwhile China's moribund national teams, which have already crashed out of qualifying for the next World Cup and the Olympics, received a boost when real estate tycoon Wang Jianlin donated US$77 million ($76.92 million) for training programs.

Cai Zhenhua, China's vice sports minister, voiced optimism that Chinese football could at last be on its way to the success that has proved so elusive for so long, despite the country's 1.3 billion population.

"We're climbing rungs on a ladder for Chinese soccer," Cai told China Central Television, which has now agreed to resume broadcasts of the Super League next season.

"I'm full of confidence and determination to make Chinese people satisfied with the sport and make Chinese national teams regular participants in Asian and world tournaments."

But despite rapid advances, the spectre of corruption will never be far from Chinese football, Wilson said, potentially undermining the benefit of big names like Anelka.

"The problem in Chinese football is that there is no transparency ... this creates an environment where corruption in football is hard to completely eradicate," he said.

"And, more importantly, the perception of corruption is even more difficult to erase."

The French striker has been linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge since losing his position in the starting XI this season, and had a transfer request accepted.

It is believed Anelka has agreed to an enormous salary in the vicinity of $A270,000 a week to join up with the Blue Devils in January.

Various sides had eyes on the 32-year-old including Italian giant AC Milan and West Ham United in Europe and MLS sides New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia Union and Montreal Impact.

The Chinese Super League club has offered former France forward Anelka a three-year contract, which includes a salary reportedly in excess of £6million ($9.2 million).

West Ham is also said to be interested in the 32-year-old, but Shanghai assistant spokesperson Ma Yue believes agreement with Anelka's representatives is close.

He told Shanghai Daily: "It will be a three-year contract and will involve both football and commercial co-operation."

Club chairman Zhu Jun added: "We started to talk about every detail from the first minute of the negotiations.

"The whole contract is made up of details. It's comprehensive and complicated, involving the player's image and the commercial co-operation."

Anelka will be a free agent next northern summer and therefore able to sign a pre-contract agreement with a rival club in January.

He confirmed at the weekend that he already knew his next destination, suggesting a move to China was imminent.

As well as the riches on offer in the far east, there is the prospect of playing under former Fulham boss and fellow Frenchman Jean Tigana, who is said to be close to being confirmed as Shanghai Shenhua's new manager.

West Ham is also reportedly considering making a loan move, which would reunite Anelka with Sam Allardyce, who Anelka played under at Bolton.

Whatever the outcome, Anelka is set to spend the remainder of 2011 kicking his heels.

He and Chelsea team-mate Alex were last week banished from Andre Villas-Boas' first-team squad after handing in transfer requests.

Reports in France claim the Super League side is willing to pay the former Paris St Germain, Arsenal and Real Madrid star 10.6 million euros ($14.55 million) a year.

Anelka, who is available again for France selection after serving an 18-game ban for his part in the row which derailed Les Bleus' World Cup campaign in South Africa in 2010, is out of contract at Stamford Bridge at the end of the season.

Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas admitted last month he feared 32-year-old Anelka might not be interested in renewing his existing deal.

He said at the time: "It might not be the player's expectancy to renew (his contract).

"We will make our efforts for him to renew but Nico has his own decision to make and I am not sure he will be willing.

"Nico as a person is very, very happy and he still belongs to Chelsea in the last year of his contract."

Anelka has also been linked with moves to Major League Soccer with New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia Union and Montreal Impact as well as AC Milan.

The striker did not travel with Chelsea to Germany for its UEFA Champions League clash at Bayer Leverkusen, adding to the speculation.

Villas-Boas said: "He's not injured.

"Nico has been used, as you know, more times as a winger, rather than a striker.

"We've decided to include a different squad for this game, not because of Nico's ability because his ability is tremendous."

Wu headed Cao Yunding's cross home just 10 minutes into the game at Shanghai Hongkou Stadium.

Both sides created several scoring chances in the remaining 80 minutes but neither could find a way through.

After a quiet start, Cao delivered a long cross to Wu who evaded the offside trap to head past onrushing goalkeeper Sun Shoubo.

Shanghai went close to a second goal seven minutes later when Wu's fellow China international Feng Renliang outpaced two defenders before curling a shot which Sun kept out with a reflex save.

Feng created another chance just a minute before the half-time break, when his 30-yard effort flicked off the crossbar.

Dalian was the better side in the second period, forcing Shanghai to defend desperately.

Bulgarian forward Martin Kamburov squandered a golden opportunity 13 minutes before the final whistle, clipping a 30-yard free-kick against the post.

Shanghai is on 33 points in 11th place in the 16-team league while Dalian is two points and two places behind them, with the once-mighty pair having only just staved off the threat of relegation.

With 28 rounds of matches played, and two remaining, Shanghai and Dalian have been saved by the poor form of the teams beneath them.

Shenzhen Kingway and Chengdu Blades are both on 23 points, five points adrift of 14th-placed Nanchang Bayi.

Nanchang clinched a much-needed three points at Shaanxi Province Stadium today, beating Shaanxi Baorong 3-1.

Youngster Yang Chen fired the visitor ahead after 11 minutes, before Zhang Chenglin responded in the 25th minute with a header.

Brazilian Johnny Meg do Nascimento Osorio restored Nanchang's lead four minutes into the second half before Lang Zheng scored an insurance goal 18 minutes before the end of the game.

"It's safe to say that we are in the better position to avoid relegation," said Nanchang manager Zhu Jiong. "I told my players to go all out for another victory so that we don't have to face a do-or-die situation in the last round."

Sydney twice came from behind at Hongkou Stadium, with Brazilian striker Bruno Cazarine scoring once in each half with some sublime finishing.

With two rounds left, Sydney is just one point behind group pacesetters Suwon Bluewings of the Korea Republic and Kashima Antlers of Japan, who drew 1-1 in Tokyo earlier in the day.

"'We are happy we are still in with a chance and we will now focus on the following games, we need to refresh a bit," Lavicka told AAP over the phone from Shanghai.

"We still have plenty of room to improve. They showed great character and unity."

The impressive Bridge caused Shanghai problems throughout the game, setting up Cazarine's second goal before lashing the ball home from just inside the penalty area.

Cazarine, who was Sydney's leading scorer in the recently completed A-League season, scored in first-half injury time and again just before the hour.

Slapdash defending threatened to cost Sydney dearly, as it conceded a couple of soft goals.

Shanghai put Sydney under intense early pressure and Jiang Jiajun scored after just eight minutes.

He recovered quickly after being fouled by Sydney captain Terry McFlynn and raced onto the free kick he won to lift the ball over goalkeeper Liam Reddy.

Just before the break, Cazarine ran onto a Nicky Carle through ball and delicately lifted the ball over the Shanghai goalkeeper.

Sydney found itself behind again in the 52nd minute, when Scott Jamieson headed a left wing cross past his own goalkeeper.

But Cazarine came to Sydney's rescue again when Bridge headed a cross from McFlynn into the Brazilian's path and he produced a couple of deft touches to put the ball in the net.

Sydney coach Vitezslav Lavicka recalled midfielders McFlynn and Carle after injury and suspension respectively, while Andrew Durante replaced injured central defender Stephan Keller.

McFlynn and Carle each picked up a yellow card in the first half, with the latter struggling to impose himself on Shanghai until he set up Cazarine's first goal.

Jiajun and Colombian Duvier Riascos looked dangerous for Shanghai, but Sydney came into the game after the first 10 minutes.

Bridge shot wide and produced two good cutbacks, which narrowly failed to find a teammate and he just failed to get on the end of a teasing cross from McFlynn.

Hirofumi Moriyasu had a shot blocked, Jamieson had another attempt saved and Matthew Jurman wastefully headed a Shannon Cole free kick over the bar from inside the six-yard box.

"Both Bruno and Bridgey showed very good performances and effectiveness."

Cazarine was Sydney's top goalscorer with nine in their recently completed A-League campaign.

For Bridge, his winner helped ease the frustration of an injury-plagued domestic campaign which gleaned just one goal in 18 games.

'I'm finally injury free after a long frustrating season," Bridge told AAP from China.

Lavicka reported no new injuries, but said it was hard to assess whether striker David Williams (calf) and Keller (ankle) would recover in time from their existing problems to be fit for Sydney's next game against Suwon on 3 May.

Both teams enter the second half of the four-team round-robin phase three points behind South Korea's Suwon Bluewings and Japan's Kashima Antlers.

"It's more or less a must win game for both sides," McFlynn told AAP on the phone from China.

"I think one of the positives we took out of the 1-1 home draw we had against Shanghai Shenhua in Sydney was that we had the lions' share of possession and hopefully we'll continue that tomorrow night and turn the possession into goals."

Sydney took just two points from its three home games and its three remaining fixtures are all overseas.

The side will be bolstered by the return of McFlynn and defender Sebastian Ryall.

Midfielder and marquee player Nicky Carle, who missed last week's 3-0 home loss to Kashima with a hamstring strain, will play if he recovers from Monday's training session.

On the minus side, striker David Williams and central defender Stephan Keller were both ruled unfit.

While Sydney went five weeks without a competitive game following the postponement of its match at Kashima due to the earthquake and tsunami, McFlynn has had an even longer break.

The Irish midfielder missed Sydney's last two ACL games due to suspension after being sent off in the opener against Suwon on March 2.

In the seven weeks since, McFlynn has played just half a practice match on March 30.

"Fitness-wise I will be fine," McFlynn said.

"We knew that I was going to face a long time off, especially with the tragic circumstances in Japan.

"I've basically had a little mini pre-season under my belt, a practice game in between as well.

"To be honest, I'm refreshed and ready to go for the game tomorrow."

Shanghai adopted a cagey approach in Sydney, but McFlynn was wary of the Chinese team's ability to hit opponents on the break.

"I think we've got to be aware of their quick counter attacks, they are a very quick, very mobile side."

The Sydney skipper said the team had put last week's emphatic loss to Kashima behind it and that the atmosphere in the camp was fantastic.

Despite dictating play Sydney FC was left looking for its first AFC Champions League win after a 1-1 draw in an action packed clash with Shanghai Shenhua at the Sydney Football Stadium on Wednesday night.

Shanghai's Colombian striker Duvier Riascos put the visitor in front in the sixth minute with Sydney's marquee man Nicky Carle slotting home a first-half equaliser.

An interested spectator at the SFS was former Manchester United skipper Roy Keane. The Irishman has been heavily linked with the coaching job at Melbourne Victory by press reports.

With both teams yet to win in Group H they were desperate for a win.

Shanghai came out on the attack and it paid off as Riascos found himself on the end of a long ball and got past Sydney's Stephan Keller, his shot deflecting off defender Sebastian Ryall into the back of the net.

Brazilian import Bruno Cazarine created the Sky Blues' first chance in the 11th minute and then again a minute later.

But it was Carle who broke through to equalise in the 12th minute amid a flurry of chances for Sydney with a neat right-foot effort.

Shanghai midfielder Feng Renliang also had a double attempt at scoring, rattling the woodwork near the end of the first stanza, and taking advantage of a Sydney defence caught napping to break through again moments later to force a desperate save from goalkeeper Liam Reddy.

The pace died down in the second half but crafty Riascos caused all sorts of problems for Sydney's defence, with a powerful shot on goal in the 54th minute and a misfired header minutes later.

Sydney's Japanese import Hirofumi Moriyasu created one of the only chances for the Sky Blues in the second half, his long range effort sailing over the crossbar.

Sydney coach Vitezslav Lavicka brought on young-gun Dimitri Petratos to try to inject some firepower with about 10 minutes to go but he failed to break the deadlock.

Lavicka was left lamenting Sydney's missed opportunities, after a second ACL stalemate on home soil.

"They blocked many strike attempts but they were always dangerous on the counter attack. We created chances and of course we expected more than one point from this game."

Having not played a match in over a month after March's match against Japan's Kashima Antlers was postponed in the wake of the country's devastating earthquake and tsunami, Sydney was left without as much match practice as it would have liked at this stage of the competition.

"It's a strange situation to not play a regular game for five weeks but what happened, happened," Lavicka said.

"It caused trouble for us but for the people of Japan there is much more trouble there so we can't complain."

Sydney will play its rescheduled ACL match against the Antlers at the SFS next Wednesday.

In Korea, Suwon Bluewings and Kashima drew 1-1 to keep the group wide open.

Yeom Ki-Hun put the home side ahead on 66 minutes before Koji Nakata levelled the ledger four minutes later.

Suwon leads the group on five points from three matches with Sydney, Kashima and Shanghai all on two points, although the Chinese side has played one game more than the A-League and Japanese outfits.