An investigation into the identity of a Gambian player at Hamburg has been started by German football’s governing body.

It follows a complaint from Nuremburg about the true name and age of midfielder Bakery Jatta, who played against them in a 4-0 defeat on Monday.

His club’s records say Jatta is 21, but there are claims in the German media he is older and called Bakery Daffeh.

Hamburg, who play in Germany’s second tier, “stand completely behind” Jatta.

The DFB, Germany’s football association, said it “has already written to” Hamburg and “asked for an opinion on the allegations”.

“The panel will then have the appeal in due course,” it added.

Hamburg head of sport Jonas Boldt has said he is “amazed” by the complaint and expects “an unambiguous response” about Jatta’s eligibility.

Records say that Jatta has been at Hamburg since 2016 and was born on 6 June 1998, with no evidence of a club prior to that.

On the other hand, there is evidence that a Bakery Daffeh played for Brikama United in The Gambia, as well as Casa Sport in Senegal.

Daffeh also scored for The Gambia under-20 team in a 1-0 win over Liberia in 2014.

A report in German newspaper Bild claims any trace of Daffeh ends in August 2015, at precisely the same time as Jatta turned up in Germany.