Radja Nainggolan

Radja Nainggolan (born 4 May 1988) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Belgian First Division A club Antwerp.

Nicknamed Il Ninja, he spent all but his entire professional career in Italy, representing Piacenza, Cagliari, Roma and Inter Milan and making over 430 Serie A appearances. He was named four consecutive times in the Serie A Team of the Year.

A Belgium international for eight years, Nainggolan played 30 times for his country (scoring six goals) and represented it at Euro 2016.

Club Career

Piacenza

Nainggolan began playing football with Tubantia Borgerhout at the age of 5. Seven years later he moved to the youth team of Germinal Beerschot, where he remained until 2005, when he was noted by Alessandro Beltrami and moved to Italian Serie B club Piacenza. He made his senior debut on 28 May 2006, during a home defeat to Arezzo, being inserted permanently into the first team the following season.

In the 2008–09 campaign, Nainggolan became a starter for the Emilia-Romagna side, playing 38 of 42 games and scoring three goals, which contributed to them avoiding relegation.

Cagliari

On 27 January 2010, Nainggolan was loaned to Cagliari with a buyout clause. He made his Serie A debut on 7 February, playing seven minutes in a 0–3 away loss against Inter Milan. After making seven appearances (including being sent off a few minutes after entering the field on 28 February against Chievo Verona), the club announced it had acquired 50% of his rights in a co-ownership deal.

In the first part of 2010–11, under manager Pierpaolo Bisoli, Nainggolan started often due to the absence of Daniele Conti. On 31 October 2010 he scored his first goal in the Italian top level, from a right-footed volley in a 2–0 home win over Bologna. On 31 January 2011, Cagliari redeemed the second half of his contract from Piacenza.

In early October 2013, after three seasons as an undisputed first-choice, Nainggolan a

This page also has a version in other languages :  Раджа Наингголан (russian)