I played for Tottenham and Daniel Levy tried to stop me representing my country
Former Tottenham midfielder Nabil Bentaleb has revealed what the Spurs hierarchy tried to do when he made the decision to represent Algeria internationally.
After impressing for Tottenham’s Under-21s, Nabil Bentaleb was handed his first-team debut by Tim Sherwood in 2013 in his first match in charge, coming on as a substitute for Mousa Dembele in a clash at St Mary’s.
It was during Mauricio Pochettino’s first season at Spurs that the midfielder really blossomed, forming a dynamic partnership in the middle of the park alongside another academy graduate, who has now turned coach, Ryan Mason.
The Tottenham academy graduate found himself falling down the pecking order in the 2015-16 season and ended up leaving Spurs the subsequent summer to join Schalke after making 66 appearances for the Lilywhites in total.
Nabil Bentaleb reveals Daniel Levy tried to talk him out of playing for Algeria
The 30-year-old has managed to get his career back on track over the last few years, impressing for Ligue 1 side Angers before signing for Lille in 2023.
The former Tottenham Hotspur man has represented Algeria 55 times, but he has now revealed that the North London club tried to convince him to choose England or France instead of the African nation.
Bentaleb said on Kampo Media Podcast: “Choosing Algeria was a no-brainer for me. When the Algerian national team called me, my coach (from Tottenham) and the president, Daniel Levy, basically said: Don’t choose Algeria, England coach Roy Hodgson is counting on you for Euro 2016; you’d be eligible for England.
“There was a big agent who came to talk to me, who said: don’t choose Algeria, your career won’t be the same, choose France or England instead, don’t worry.
“Personally, I honestly didn’t give a damn; for me, it was Algeria. Frankly, it was the Holy Grail to play for Algeria. I’m proud to have made the decision to represent Algeria.”
Tottenham youngster changed his national allegiance recently
Players who are eligible to represent multiple countries often face a difficult decision at a young age, as it is very hard to predict how their careers will go.
That is why many try to put it off for a few years, but other players are just keen to play international football as soon as possible and thus tend to jump at the opportunity to do so.
One such example is Jamie Donley, who recently made his debut for Northern Ireland after deciding to change his international allegiance.
If Donley becomes as good as many at Spurs expect him to, he might regret that decision as a potential England call-up in the future cannot be ruled out.
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