Tobias Sylvester
Borussia Dortmund star, Youssoufa Moukoko has been caught up in the age fraud scandal that rocked Cameroonian football which led to the discovery that he’s 22 years old, rather than 18.
Youssoufa Moukoko Age Fraud
The striker, who is very highly rated by Dortmund and targeted by several Premier League clubs, was born in Cameroon but moved to Germany aged 14 where he was adopted.
Last week, Cameroon’s Under-17 side were preparing to play Central African qualifying games in the Nations Cup this month when it was found 21 of the 30-strong squad failed age tests.
Fresh players were quickly drafted in by coach Jean Pierre Fiala but, in a further humiliation, it was discovered that 11 of the additions were also over-age.
Samuel Eto’o – who is president of Cameroonian football’s governing body, Fecafoot – had called for all players selected for their youth side to undergo MRI tests to determine players’ age in an attempt to deal with the rising problem of age fraud in the country.
Austrian news outlet Laola1 details claims that Moukoko’s adoptive father had sent the alleged unearthed birth certificate to a journalist.
The player’s adoption emerged in 2022 but now an investigation into age fraud is alleged to have raised doubts about the legitimacy of Moukoko being 18.
It is claimed that further doubts emerged due to Moukoko allegedly having partners significantly older than him in his early teenage years.
Newcastle United and Chelsea are among the clubs who hold an interest in the striker but Premier League sides are understood to be ready to step back from talks following developments in an investigation into age fraud in the game.
When contacted by Sportsmail on Thursday, the German FA said: ‘We do not comment on any speculation.’
Age fraud has been a long-running concern for African football, with many of their international successes at junior level clouded by allegations of over-age players.
Accusations have regularly been made but there has seemingly been little attempt to investigate it from the authorities.
KanyiDaily recalls that Nigerians had recently reacted in disbelief after Super Eagle captain, Ahmed Musa shared a photo of his PVC showing his date of birth.
