Anthony Le Tallec (born 3 October 1984) is a French former professional footballer who played as a forward or an attacking midfielder for Liverpool, Sochaux, and Annecy FC. Club career Liverpool Born in Hennebont, Le Tallec was signed from Le Havre AC by Liverpool in 2001, along with his cousin Florent Sinama Pongolle, by manager Gérard Houllier. This was after impressive performances for France at the UEFA European Under-16 Championship and the FIFA U-17 World Cup, with the player being awarded the 'Silver Ball' as the second best player (behind his cousin) in the latter tournament as the national team emerged champions; both players remained a further two years at Le Havre, loaned by the Reds. Le Tallec scored his first and only Liverpool goal in a UEFA Cup tie against NK Olimpija Ljubljana in October 2003. After his return, he also featured in the club's victorious run in the UEFA Champions League, starting in the home leg of the quarter-final tie against Juventus F.C. but failing to appear in the squad of 18 for the final itself. For 2005–06, Le Tallec joined fellow Premier League side Sunderland on loan, in a bid to gain some more first-team football. He stated: "I am a competitor and I want to play all the time, but with Liverpool it was impossible. I chose to come to Sunderland because I need to play every week". In a disappointing season for the club, who finished bottom of the table, he was its top scorer with only six goals in all competitions; this included a header against Fulham, helping the Black Cats pick up their only home win. In May 2006, after Sunderland announced they would not be looking to retain his services, Le Tallec returned to Liverpool but was not given a squad number by boss Rafael Benítez. At the end of the month, he joined up with the French under-21s for the European Championship which took place in Portugal, only featuring in the final group match after the team had already secured qualification and being substituted after 61 minutes. Return to France In August 2006, Le Tallec moved to FC Sochaux-Montbéliard on another loan deal. He won the Coupe de France scoring a late equaliser after coming off the bench in the final, which eventually led to a penalty shootout against Olympique de Marseille – a fellow Liverpool player out on loan, Djibril