“Lille, this is the first club that gave me the desire to become a professional footballer.” Nabil Bentaleb is unequivocal about the passion he has for his hometown club, his journey to the first team this season has been an itinerant one. It’s taken him through four countries and plenty of frustration along the way. From Belgium to the Bundesliga, learn more about his journey and how his strong play is helping his team push for the Champions League.

That desire, of course, looked to have been ended in 2009, when as a teenager Bentaleb was let go by the team. He had joined the club at the age of ten, playing futsal in the local suburb of Wazemmes, looking up to players like Kader Keita and Jean II Makoun. He also spoke fondly of Lille’s match against Manchester United in the Champions League, remembering Ryan Giggs’ famous (or infamous) free kick.

While he may have expressed disappointment at being let go, he put his head down and got to work, moving north of the border to join Belgian side Mouscron. A spell back in the country of his birth followed, at Dunkerque, and along with being called up for France’s U-19s in 2012, he joined Tottenham Hotspur in 2012.

Despite his youth, it would hardly take him long to make his debut, less than a month after his nineteenth birthday, in December of 2013. The following season saw him truly blossom, though, as he made more than thirty appearances, becoming a lynchpin in midfield for what was an exciting and dynamic team at the time, with Dele Alli and Harry Kane leading the attack. He also made his debut for Algeria, playing in the 2014 World Cup.

Disaster struck in the following season, though — ankle and knee injuries saw him make just a handful of appearances, and for the 2016-17 campaign, he joined German side Schalke on loan before eventually making the move permanent. His first three seasons were strong, with Schalke being regulars in Europe and Bentaleb even winning the Bundesliga goal of the season.

Things would, sour, though, and he ended up being dropped to the reserves and spending an unhappy spell with a struggling Newcastle side in January of 2020, having spent the first half of the season injured. Groin surgery would then curtail the following season, his last one in Gelsenkirchen.

After spending six months out of football, he joined Angers SCO in Ligue 1 in January of last year. The Breton side struggled, and eventually suffered relegation, but Lille, following the sale of Carlos Baleba to Brighton in the summer, would come calling, eventually bringing Bentaleb’s career circle just before the transfer window closed.

His first month back in northern France required some patience, as he worked to return to full fitness following a heart issue detected at his physical, but after a cracking draw against leaders PSG at the weekend, Les Dogues are now unbeaten in all thirteen matches in which he has started. Now again a regular with Algeria, he will join Les Fennecs as they seek to win a third title in Côte d’Ivoire — and as for that Giggs free kick?

“It was an experience that fed my dreams, I was there in the stadium, I saw all of the people cheering the team.” Now, with Lille just two points off third, Bentaleb may have the chance to inspire the next generation to dream.