Hey, Tottenham Loanee Nabil Bentaleb Still Good
By Ryan Wrenn
As we endure the international break for another week, HotspurHQ is going to take a look at a few of Tottenham’s loaned out players — starting with Nabil Bentaleb.
Taken in the wide view, the arc of the Algerian’s story is a peculiar one. He was called up from the Academy to Tottenham’s first team by Tim Sherwood at the tail end of the 2013/14 season, performing surprisingly well in midfield given the fact that he was all of 19 years old at the time.
He impressed enough there to earn a spot in Mauricio Pochettino’s starting XI for the Argentine coach’s inaugural season with the club. Alongside Ryan Mason, he again exceeded expectations — though was not quite the presence Tottenham needed to stem the flow of goals conceded.
From the start of the 2015/16 season, Bentaleb looked in trouble. Eric Dier’s ascent up the pecking order in defensive midfield made Bentaleb’s presence redundant. Add to that a poor performance against Manchester United to start the season and then a series of prolonged injuries, and Bentaleb’s stock plummeted.
It was no surprise then that over the summer there was a decent amount of talk about where Bentaleb would end up next. Pochettino was in the midst of his second consecutive summer clear out, after all, and with the arrival of Victor Wanyama Tottenham had the cover it needed in midfield. Links with FC Porto and Bundesliga clubs seemed to herald the end of Bentaleb’s time with the club.
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Only that wasn’t exactly what happened. Tottenham sold Bentaleb’s erstwhile midfield partner Ryan Mason and elected to give Bentaleb another chance, albeit one with a different team. He was loaned out to join an especially youthful Schalke side in Germany.
That start of the 2016/17 season didn’t look great for Schalke or Bentaleb. They lost their first five matches in the league and looked like real contenders for demotion.
Then, on the same day Tottenham earned their 2-0 win over Manchester City, Schalke beat Borussia Mönchengladbach 4-0 to earn their first win of the season. Bentaleb assisted one of the goals scored, and less than two weeks later would score his first goal for his new club in the 1-1 draw with Augsburg.
Those two consecutive fine performances would mark the turning point for both Schalke and Bentaleb. In six matches in all competitions since the Augsburg result, Schalke have won five and drawn just one.
That dramatic shift owes itself in no small part to Bentaleb himself. Defying expectations, the 21-year-old has scored four goals in his last four starts for Schalke — including two in a man of the match performance against Mainz.
What’s to account for this sudden turn in a player Tottenham fans know more for his distribution and marking than his finishing?
For starters, it’s a matter of role. The nominal defensive midfielder actually plays as something of a box-to-box player for Schalke, not unlike his Tottenham teammate Dele Alli. Indeed, in recognition of his latent talents in a more attacking role, Bentaleb was awarded the number 10 shirt prior to the start of the season.
He’s lived up to that number clearly, and in so doing is keyed up to play a fundamental role in Schalke’s recovery from their early season misery. As of this writing, Schalke are 12th in the Bundesliga — and the only team in the bottom half of the table with a positive goal difference.
Where Bentaleb goes after the 2016/17 season is still very much up in the air. The loan agreement to Schalke reportedly contained language that would permit the club to make the move permanent if they so desired. At his current rate, it would be a genuine shock if Schalke didn’t attempt to activate that clause come the end of the season.
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If Tottenham doesn’t want to profit from Bentaleb’s return to form, they could welcome him back in the summer. He would certainly be an upgrade to some of the options on the bench currently.
With players like Harry Winks in the ascendancy and Alli still poised to truly come into his own, Bentaleb’s chances of wearing lilywhite again remain murky however.