Armin Đerlek

Early years

Born in Novi Pazar, Đerlek started playing football with a local academy named "AS" at the age of 7. Four years later, he moved to Pazar Juniors. In an interview made in 2017, he remembered on 28 January 2011, when his grandfather took him to the first training. Playing for the club, he was affirmed as "the target man" in the academy since 2015 when he left the club as one of the top youth prospects in Serbia. He moved to OFK Beograd in summer 2015 at the age of 15, penning his first three-year professional contract with the club. He sued the club for unpaid wages and received a dispute over arbitration in March 2017, when he left OFK Beograd as a free agent. Later, same month, it was announced about his moving to Partizan. Previously, he had been marked as a pick of the greatest rival, Red Star Belgrade.

Partizan

On 28 April 2017, Đerlek signed a three-year contract with Partizan, when he was officially promoted by the club's director of football, Ivica Iliev. He passed summer pre-season with the first team, but failed to make any official appearances with the club for the rest of 2017. In February 2018, Đerlek joined the first squad under coach Miroslav Đukić, among a group of youth players who impressed during the winter-break, choosing to wear the number 44 jersey. He made his professional debut for Partizan in 23rd fixture match of the 2017–18 Serbian SuperLiga campaign, having played 67 minutes in 2–1 away victory over Mladost Lučani on 18…

In 2014, Đerlek was invited into Serbian under-15 national team under coach Marko Mitrović. He scored a goal in a debut match for the team against Montenegro on 9 December 2014. He also scored against the Netherlands on 11 February 2015. Đerlek continued playing with Serbian under-16 selection between 2015 and 2016, scoring in matches against Poland and Macedonia, and in a match against Montenegro on 10 June 2016, when he scored a hat trick. He also scored on his debut match for Serbian under-17 level against Hungary on 8 December 2015. He played performed as a captain until summer 2017, helping the team to qualify for the UEFA European Under-17 Championship in 2016 and 2017. In December 2017, Perica Ognjenović called Đerlek in Serbian under-18 national team for the tournament in Israel. He made his debut for the team as a captain in 1–0 defeat against home team on 11 December same year, and also played against Germany next day. Đerlek later represented the Serbia national under-21 football team in UEFA Under-21 Championship qualifying matches.

Standing at 5-foot-8-inches (1.73 m), Đerlek usually operates as an attacking midfielder. He can use both legs equally well, which allows him to create a position for a shot from multiple angles. He is characterised as a creative playmaker with strong pace, likewise good ball control and game vision. He is also described as classic number 10 in 4-2-3-1 formation, with leadership and captaincy roles. Due to his playing style, The Guardian compared him with Eden Hazard as also his compatriot Adem Ljajić.

Club

As of 17 May 2026