Nader El-Jindaoui: Who is the Hertha Berlin winger and star influencer?
If you are one of his millions of followers, the chances are you already know a lot about Hertha Berlin winger Nader El-Jindaoui, but bundesliga.com is here to profile the big name on the internet now making a splash in German football.
Age: 27 (born 16 November 1996)
Club: Hertha Berlin
Position: Winger
Country: Germany
Key stats
Let's start with the football. Having developed as a youth player at Energie Cottbus and Chemnitz, El-Jindaoui has played German regional league football since 2016 - at Babelsberg and Berliner AK along with the reserve teams of Greuther Fürth, Fortuna Düsseldorf and Hertha.
There can be no doubt El-Jindaoui made his way to the Hertha ranks on merit rather than fame - with his attacking output exploding in 2021/22 with 14 goals and ten assists as Berliner AK finished ahead of Hertha's reserves in the Northeast Regional League.
Watch: Inside the home of Hertha Berlin
Six goals in his first season for Hertha Berlin II in 2022/23 and two more in his first 13 appearances of 2023/24 were enough to earn El-Jindaoui inclusion in Hertha's first-team squad for the first time in December 2023 - as he remained an unused substitute in a 5-1 win over Elversberg. A few days later, he made his debut in astonishing style. After coming on for Florian Niederlechner in the 80th minute with Hertha 1-2 down to Hamburg in a DFB Cup tie, El-Jindaoui helped Hertha level and then secure a thrilling 3-3 draw after extra time. El-Jindaoui then stepped up in the shootout to score and help the Berlin side progress to the quarter-finals.
El-Jindaoui, who was born in Berlin to Palestinian parents, boasts online numbers that far exceed his goals and assists. He has gained an astonishing two million followers on Instagram alone for his popular posts. Together with his wife Louisa, he operates a channel - which has 1.75 million followers at the latest count - showcasing their life with their young daughter.
Watch: El-Jindaoui talks about his own footballing development on his YouTube channel
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Plays a bit like: Leroy Sané
El-Jindaoui is the same age as the Bayern Munich and Germany attacker, and while he has not yet scaled quite the same heights in the game, the two share staggering pace, an eye for a direct run, clinical shot and the ability to play on either wing or in the middle.
Did you know?
It hasn't always been easy to separate the footballing talent of El-Jindaoui from the adoration of the masses of online fans who value his fortitude. A friendly match between Hertha's reserves and Tasmania Berlin in August 2022 had to be canceled as too many fans were invading the pitch to make photo and autograph requests from the new star signing.
What they're saying
"If you google me, it says I'm a footballer. That's how I feel too. I'm a Berlin boy. To be able to make my debut in the city I grew up in is a perfect story. I hope it can give courage to people to never give up on their dreams." - El-Jindaoui after making his Hertha Berlin debut against Hamburg in the DFB Cup in December 2023
"When I first heard about it [his social media activity] I wondered what it was all about. I've watched him though and he gives everything every day. He gives his life for training. He's certainly got balls. He just smashed the ball in [for his penalty]. That was great - he deserves respect for that."- Hertha Berlin coach Pal Dardai after the DFB Cup tie against Hamburg
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