France: Bentaleb returns as captain and cornerstone of Ligue 1! (video)

After raising concerns following his exit in the Champions League, Nabil Bentaleb delivered an impressive performance yesterday in the league with Lille.

There were fears of the worst after Davide Ancelotti's comments regarding his substitution at halftime against Betis last week, but ultimately, the midfielder not only returned as a starter this weekend but also wore the captain's armband.

In the absence of Benjamin André and Olivier Giroud, who started on the bench, it was the Algerian who led his teammates to a fine home victory against Troyes, allowing Lille to rise to the top of the Ligue 1 standings after four matchdays.

The Algerian international, who has been playing with a cardiac defibrillator for nearly two years, remains an essential player for Lille, with whom he extended his contract this summer. Yesterday against Troyes, he once again delivered a solid performance in a 2-0 victory.

After the match, he stated, “we must not rush things, we know the league, we have experience, we know we have to approach each match one at a time, stay humble in victory as in defeat. We should never be too high when we win and too low when we lose; we try to be a balanced team. We faced difficulties in the last two league matches, so this is a good thing for us, we need to work, and it shows that there is still a lot of room for improvement.”

DZfoot