They called him “Dr. Hammer”: In Frankfurt people mourn the Eintracht legend Bernd Nickel. The 426-time Bundesliga player with the iron-hard shot died after a long illness at the age of 72.
Deep sadness at the Frankfurt Eintracht. After a long illness, Bernd Nickel died at the age of 72, as the Bundesliga club confirmed on social media. Although the midfielder only appeared once for the national team, he is one of the Bundesliga legends. He played 426 times in the first division, always wearing the unity jersey. He scored 141 goals.
So to this day, no midfielder has met more often in the history of the Bundesliga. Nickel was known for his iron-hard shot, which earned him the nickname “Dr. Hammer”. But he also had outstanding technology; in his career he transformed four corners directly – curiously, one from each of the four corners of the field of the Frankfurt Waldstadion. As was often the case in the early days of the league, he remained loyal to his club. From 1968 to 1983 he played for Eintracht and won the DFB Cup three times (1974, 1975 and 1981). His greatest success was winning the UEFA Cup in 1980 in two finals against Borussia Mönchengladbach (2: 3 and 1: 0). Nickel was on the pitch for the full time in both finals.
Bernd Nickel – “a gifted footballer”
“He was very important for our game at Eintracht. His free kicks were unique, he was a gifted footballer,” said Eintracht legend Jürgen Grabowski, paying tribute to his former team-mate and long-time friend: “The nice thing was that we were close even after our playing days Have stayed friends, “said the 1974 world champion in a statement made by Frankfurter Eintracht. Charly Körbel, another Eintracht legend and Bundesliga record player with 602 matches, told the “Bild” newspaper: “I’m shocked. Bernd wasn’t loud, but he had a huge heart for the boys.”
Together with Uli Hoeneß and Ottmar Hitzfeld, Nickel was also part of the Olympic selection for the 1972 Games in Munich. A 2: 3 defeat against the selection of the GDR of all places ended the chances of a medal. It was only at the very end of his career that Bernd Nickel was unfaithful to his unity. He played for the Young Boys from Bern in Switzerland for a year before ending his career. He then worked as a players’ agent in the 1980s and ran a sporting goods store in Herborn for many years until 2012.
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