French striker Nicolas Anelka (right) attends a training session with Shenhua's current head coach and compatriot Jean-Florent Ikwange Ibenge (center) in Shanghai yesterday.

Shanghai Shenhua's player-coach Nicolas Anelka played down his threats of retirement yesterday, saying he would continue as a player even if the club signs a new coach.

The Frenchman had told a local evening newspaper on Monday that if the club signed a new coach he would consider retiring from the game. Zhu Jun reportedly fined him for his comments.

Yesterday, he seemed to imply that there was a lack of communication between him and the club. The 33-year-old said the club had not informed him about plans to sign a new coach - former Argentina coach Sergio Batista, who was due in the city last night.

"I don't know him. Everything I hear is from the press and I haven't got any information from the club. There is a problem of communication between me and the club," Anelka said yesterday.

"I don't know anything and no one has told me about the new coach, so I'm surprised that we are talking about it today. The club should tell me about this if such a thing exists.

"Everyone knows I'm player-coach, but my main job is as a player. If something happens and I am not aware of it ... that would be a problem in the future because I will still be here and I would be very disappointed.

"From the start, I tried to improve the club. I did that to help the coach and I don't get any extra money for this second role that I am doing."

Anelka emphasized that he wanted to fix the problem. "I tried my best as a coach. We have a lot of young players and that is a challenge for the club as well," Anelka said.

Guo Guangqi, Shenhua's team leader, said the club needed a qualified head coach after Jean Tigana left. Jean-Florent Ibenge, the current coach of Shenhua, does not have a professional coaching license that qualifies him for the role in the Chinese Super League, Guo explained.

Shanghai Shenhua will?play Guizhou Renhe in a league match on Sunday. Anelka will sit out of the game after collecting four yellow cards. The biggest star name in the Chinese Super League has scored just 2 goals since his high-profile arrival in January. Shenhua, tipped as favorite for the league title before the start of the season, is currently 14th in the 16-team league - one point and place above the relegation zone - after 11 rounds of play.