Adel Taarabt (; born 24 May 1989) is a Moroccan professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Emirati club Al-Nasr and the Morocco national team. Taarabt began his playing career in France at Lens before moving to English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur in 2007. Taarabt then moved to Queens Park Rangers on loan in July 2009. He was signed permanently in August 2010 and quickly established himself at Loftus Road. QPR were relegated in 2013 and in the ensuing summer, Taarabt moved to Fulham on loan. After another loan to AC Milan in Italy, Taarabt signed a long-term deal with Primeira Liga club Benfica in 2015, who loaned him out to Italian side Genoa two years later. Taarabt made his Morocco debut in February 2009, and scored his first international goal the following month. He represented the country at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. Club career Early career Taarabt was born in Fez, Morocco. At a young age, his family moved to a small town called Berre-l'Étang, Bouches-du-Rhône, France. He began his career at Lens in 2004, and played 14 matches for RC Lens B in the Championnat de France amateur. He made one first team appearance for Lens during the 2006–07 season. Tottenham Hotspur Still at the age of 17, Taarabt signed for Tottenham Hotspur on a long-term loan on 2 January 2007 after the club offered to integrate him quickly into the first team to offer him maximum playing time. Within two months, he made his first senior appearance in a Spurs shirt, entering as an 87th-minute substitute for Pascal Chimbonda against local rivals West Ham United in a 4–3 away victory on 4 March. On 7 April, he made the only other appearance of his loan, in a 1–0 defeat at another local rival, Chelsea; he replaced Teemu Tainio after 64 minutes. Tottenham signed Taarabt permanently on 8 June. He scored his first goal for Spurs in a pre-season friendly against Stevenage Borough on 7 July. He made his first of six appearances in the 2007–08 season against Derby County in the 4–0 win on 18 August, entering the 71st minute for Wayne Routledge. He won a crucial free kick, scored by Dimitar Berbatov in a 4–3 win at Upton Park sparking wild scenes in the away end. At the beginning of the 2008–09 season, Taarabt was among a group of