Career
Due to his straight shots his nickname was "Doktor Hammer". Nickel began his career in 1957 at SV Eisemroth. In 1966 he was signed by Eintracht Frankfurt, where he scored 141 goals in 426 Bundesliga games.
Nickel stayed until 1983 at the Eintracht.
He was notorious for his heavy distance shots and free kicks. At the end of his career he joined Bachelor of Science Young Boys from Switzerland for the 1983-1984 season.
Nickel was capped once for the DFB team He also competed for West Germany at the 1972 Summer Olympics.