Former Tottenham midfielder Nabil Bentaleb has revealed he would still like to be at the north London club having matured since joining Schalke.
The 24-year-old, who broke through at Spurs under Tim Sherwood before playing a big role in Mauricio Pochettino’s first season, said his relationship with the Argentine broke down after a spell out injured.
Having kept the likes of Mousa Dembele out of the side during the Argentine’s first season, Bentaleb’s time on the sidelines allowed others to take their chance and knock the Algerian international down the pecking order.
Bentaleb, who will face Manchester City with Schalke in the Champions League this week, still follows Tottenham from Germany and remains in contact with Pochettino, but says he would have done things very differently at Spurs if he had been a little older.
“I got injured and when I came back, I wanted to play so bad that I had some arguments [with Pochettino],” he told the Independent.
“I was a little bit frustrated, and I was learning basically. Being on the bench is a learning curve.
“I know I made mistakes. But they helped me learn, as a man. And they don’t stop me from sleeping at night. And if I was 24 right now, and I had been at Tottenham, I don’t think I would make the same mistakes.
“I would be a hypocrite to say that I would not like to be there, and I am not a hypocrite. But this is football.
“England gave me the chance,” he added. “Where I am from, in France, no-one gave that to me. So I am forever grateful to Tottenham, the whole club, the administration. They gave me an opportunity to make my dream, to realise my dream. I grew up from 16 in England, and I left at 20. I spent a lot of time there, made lots of friends. I love that country, I love the football over there.”
