Spurs transfer news: Schalke trigger buy-on clause for Nabil Bentaleb

Tottenham Hotspur didn’t do much in the way of transfer business in the winter, which was to be expected, but a deal that the club made back in the summer transfer window has come full circle.

Tottenham and German side Schalke 04 have announced the permanent transfer of central midfielder Nabil Bentaleb.

The Algerian International was loaned out to the German side when it became clear he was not in manager Mauricio Pochettino’s long term plans, which is a stark contrast to Poch’s first season at the helm. Bentaleb didn’t have a great start to last season, then found himself sitting behind Eric Dier and Moussa Dembele in the midfield pairing after returning from an injury.

While we don’t know the official details of what triggered the transfer clause, but logic dictates it was the number of appearances in the Bundesliga given he just made his 20th appearance over the weekend in league play.

The reported fee for the transfer is €19m (£16.12m) so here’s hoping that the money is used in the summer to shore up the depth and make Spurs stronger.

Bentaleb officially made 52 apperances for Spurs across all competitions before moving to Schalke. He looks as though he’s happy where he is and getting ample playing time, so all parties involved appear to be getting what they want out of the deal.