Vlad happy for Nabil

Vlad Chiriches is set to lock horns with Nabil Bentaleb on the international stage tonight insisting: "He deserves to be at the World Cup."

Vlad's Romania will meet Nabil's Algeria in a friendly at Stade de Geneve in Carouge, Switzerland, as Algeria continue their preparations for Brazil after beating Armenia 3-1 on Saturday.

Nabil came off the bench for the final 30 minutes of that friendly and his place in Algeria's final 23 for Brazil was confirmed on Monday - no surprise to his team-mate Vlad.

"He's had a great season, came into the first team just before Christmas and did really well," said Vlad, who faced the agony of missing out on the World Cup after a play-off loss against Greece.

"I think he deserves to play for Algeria at the World Cup and I wish him all the best."

Snapped up last summer from Steaua Bucharest, central defender Vlad made 24 appearances in all competitions during his debut campaign at Spurs.

"My first season was amazing," he said. "I’ve met some great players, some great guys and it’s been so good for me. I enjoyed my first season at Spurs and in the Premier League. It’s a great league and I love to play here."

Elsewhere tonight, Gylfi Sigurdsson's Iceland take on Estonia in a friendly in Reykjavik.