Nabil Bentaleb recalled to Schalke 04 first team

Nabil Bentaleb has been recalled to the Schalke 04 first team after he was relegated to the under-23 team three weeks ago due to disciplinary issues.

The midfielder, who left Tottenham Hotspurs following a series of arguments with Mauricio Pochettino about his play time, had been training with the U23s for the past three weeks after he was asked out of the senior team.

Upon his demotion, there was no fixed time frame for his return to the senior set-up but it appears a consistently positive reaction has earned him his spot back as he is expected to join Tuesday's training.

"The feedback was consistently positive in terms of his training performance as well as his behaviour in the under-23," Interim coach Huub Stevens told club website.

"So we decided to bring him back into the team."

Bentaleb last played for Schalke 04 - who are currently going through a disappointing season after 2017-18 impressive showing - in their 7-0 loss to Manchester City in a Uefa Champions League last-16 second-leg tie that saw them exit the competition 10-2 losers. The Algeria international has scored thrice in 24 Bundesliga outings.

Morocco's defender Hamza Mendyl, also dropped from the first team, is still training with the U23s.