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Nabil Bentaleb says he always knew he was an attacking midfielder at Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham's Nabil Bentaleb (Reuters)
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The Algerian played in a deeper role during his time at White Hart Lane.

Nabil Bentaleb has been speaking about his improvement since heading out on loan from Tottenham Hotspur.

The Algerian was loaned out to Schalke 04 in the summer after being told he did not have a long-term future at Spurs under the management of Mauricio Pochettino.

Tottenham's Nabil BentalebTottenham’s Nabil Bentaleb

Bentaleb has gone on to thrive at Schalke and has been one of the top performers in the Bundesliga this season.

He has been doing so playing in a much more advanced midfield position than he did during his time at Tottenham.

Picture Supplied by Action Images - Nabil BentalebPicture Supplied by Action Images – Nabil Bentaleb

Speaking to Bild this week Bentaleb insisted he always knew he could play in the more advanced midfield positions at Spurs:

“The trainer trusts me in a more offensive position, which is good for me. I always knew I could be more offensive than I showed at Tottenham.

“In my new position, it is possible that Johannes Geis or the defenders can still intervene in the case of mistakes – that’s good.”

Fiorentina's Dele Alli comes off for Nabil BentalebFiorentina’s Dele Alli comes off for Nabil Bentaleb

The Algerian of course had little chance of playing in the position he wanted at White Hart Lane. He would need to have beaten off Danish talisman Christian Eriksen or wonderkid Dele Alli for the role – with both players big favourites of Pochettino at White Hart Lane.

The long-term future of Bentaleb seems to be away from Spurs and given his performances in Germany it might be that Tottenham go on to regret the way they let him go.