Ligue 1 teams who are looking to secure European football next season are fighting for every single point. Nice and Monaco managed to get back to winning days and both recorded a win over the weekend, and so did Lille. Fourth placed club from last season managed a tough win against Rennes on Sunday, and they did it with a help from a local boy. The hero‘s name is Nabil Bentaleb! Born in Lille, the African midfielder (plays for Algeria) came back to his club this season and came in as the sub for the first time after heart attack. It took him only three minutes to score the first of Lille‘s two goals in a 2-0 win over Rennes.February 16: Nabil Bentaleb’s day 🇩🇿🥹 pic.twitter.com/bVkDukKeFn— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) February 16, 2025 The experienced midfielder, who revived his career with Angers after it had declined in the early 2020s, had to take a break from football last July due to heart problems. He had been absent from the field until Sunday when he made his long-awaited return after more than eight months—and he marked it in the best possible way: with a goal, his first since April 2023! It wasn’t a spectacular goal—just a simple tap-in from three meters after a deflection from a corner—but it was more than enough to bring a smile back to Bentaleb’s face and pave Lille’s way to an important win that had seemed elusive for 80 minutes.Nabil Bentaleb’s amazing story 🥹🇩🇿⚽️ May 19, 2024: Last L1 match⚽️ June 18, 2024: Suffers cardiac arrest ⚽️ June 27, 2024: Told his career was probably over⚽️ Feb. 12, 2025: Back to training⚽️ Feb. 16, 2025: First match back with a goalTHE BEAUTIFUL GAME. 😍 pic.twitter.com/B6qwi0M2le— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) February 16, 2025 Naturally, the Algerian players was overwhelmed with joy and ran to the bench to celebrate with his team-mates and coaching staff. After all, just eight months ago, he was on the verge of an early retirement after a heart attack, but he made a miraculous comeback and even scored for his club. In the days after his cardiac arrest, he inserted pacemaker fitted to stabilize his heart. Bentaleb was advised to step away from the game, but instead opted to follow in the footsteps of Christian Eriksen by showing extraordinary resilience to return to the elite level. Former Tottenham and Newcastle player (was there on a six months loan), Bentaleb came back to France after playing in Germany for Schalke. Earning 66 caps for his country, Bentaleb has represented Algeria at the 2014 World Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015, 2017 and 2023.##NAJAVA_MECA_8711209##
