‘It was not easy for young players at Tottenham’ – Midfielder thinks he rushed PL move
Former Tottenham midfielder Adel Taarabt has admitted he made the move to England too early in his career and should have stayed in France for an extended period of time.
Taarabt, now at Benfica, joined Spurs as a talented teenager from Lens in 2007 having played just once for the Ligue 1 outfit, but struggled during his stint in North London.
The Moroccan was used tentatively by Martin Jol and his replacement Juande Ramos, before losing his way at the start of the 2008-09 campaign.
Taarabt was then loaned to Queens Park Rangers in March during that season, having seen just three minutes of action in the Premier League (Transfermarkt), before rejoining the Hoops permanently in the summer.
He rekindled his form at Loftus Road, where he became the centrepiece of the club’s Championship-winning campaign under Neil Warnock in 2011.
And reflecting on his initial move to England with Spurs, Taarabt admits his decision to do so came too early in his career, which is something he regrets.
He told The Athletic: “My first advice [to myself], if I could come back to my career, I would not have left France that early.
“I played only a few games for the first-team when I came to Tottenham. If it was only my decision I would have stayed at least one full season in France, but the club wanted to sell me. I would have loved to make a full season at Lens before leaving.”
The 32-year-old has also revealed the transition into a dressing room full of big names at Tottenham was a tricky one having arrived from France relatively under the radar.
Taarabt added: “In France, I was one of the best talents, everyone was protecting me.
“I arrived in the dressing room at Tottenham, I found myself with Edgar Davids, Robbie Keane, Dimitar Berbatov, it all starts from zero. It was different. It was not easy for young players at Tottenham.
“I was a French guy, not speaking the language. And we had three coaches in one and a half years. It was not so easy.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Taarabt had undeniable talent and we saw flashes of that during a very limited amount of action while he was at Spurs.
His move to QPR rejuvenated him which eventually landed him in a settled role at Benfica, and that just shows that the move to Spurs wasn’t a good one for him.
He was very young at the time and moving to a completely different league and country definitely had its effects, but it is good to see him settled and enjoying his football again.
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