Nabil Bentaleb
Few players at the World Cup in Brazil will have experienced a rise quite as meteoric as will be enjoyed by Algeria's teenage midfielder Nabil Bentaleb this season.
Less than six months ago he was playing in Tottenham Hotspur's youth development squad on windswept playing fields and in near-empty stadiums.
Bentaleb, 19, has been playing well in the Premier League since making a surprise first-team debut for Spurs in Tim Sherwood's first match in charge against Southampton in December, following the departure of Andre Villas-Boas.
Like many of the Algeria squad, Bentaleb, who was born in Lille, developed through the French system but his path was strewn with disappointment.
His time at Belgium's Mouscron ended when they were declared bankrupt and a spell at Dunkerque finished when they released him.
A trial with Birmingham City came to nothing before Spurs offered him a tryout and, impressed, signed him as a triallist in September 2011. They offered him a professional contract a year later.
Bentaleb made one appearance for France's Under-19s before switching his allegiance to Algeria via his parents, and he made his debut in a 2-0 win over Slovenia last month.
Sherwood, who was head of Spurs' youth development and watched Bentaleb's progress, had no qualms about giving him his debut. He has displayed flair, invention and strength in a side that has struggled following the sale of Gareth Bale, the arrival of seven signings and the sacking of Villas-Boas.
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