Why is Youssoufa Moukoko in the headlines?
A recently-released documentary from German broadcaster ProSieben has made a series of claims about the striker, who is currently on loan at French club Nice. ‘Tricks, Cheats, Deception – The Million Dollar Business with Football Talent’, states that the Germany international is 24, rather than his previously accepted age of 20. Among other claims, it also says that Youssoufa Moukoko is not his real name.
The claims are made by a man named Joseph Moukoko, who previously claimed to be the footballer’s father and now says he helped muddy the waters in order to increase the player’s chances in Europe. Youssoufa Moukoko was born in Cameroon.
What has been said?
Dortmund reacted quickly to the claims. “In the case of Youssoufa Moukoko, the biological parents and the date of birth are derived from official identification documents and birth certificates issued by a German authority,” the club told Sky Germany.
“These documents are still valid today and are the basis for playing authorizations and permits for clubs, regardless of whether they are domestic or foreign, and of course also for association teams such as the German U21 national team.”
In the documentary, Joseph Moukoko says that Dortmund employed him to help smooth things along. “My wife was employed by an agency that works for BVB’s sponsor Evonik, and I was employed directly by BVB. That’s how we received money every month. We didn’t work. We got the money that way,” he said. DW cannot verify any of the documentary’s claims.
Why is this important?
Well, if the claims are true, it would mean Moukoko was playing overage during Germany’s under-21 European Championship win in 2021. Age has also been an enormous factor in his career so far. Moukoko was regarded as a teen prodigy after breaking a string of goalscoring records in Borussia Dortmund’s youth teams. He then became the the day after his 16th birthday and became the league’s youngest ever scorer 27 days later.
While his current ability is not impacted by his age, should the claims be true, they would affect both the history books and Moukoko’s transfer value. Younger players tend to carry a higher premium in football, given their best years are thought to be ahead of them.
Has this sort of thing happened before in German football?
In short, yes, more than once. Most notably in the . Ahead of the 2021-22 season, the Bundesliga club released a statement saying the player’s real name was actually Silas Katompa Mvumpa, and not Silas Wamangituka Fundu as previously thought. It also said he was a year older than was believed. Stuttgart said the player’s previous agent had held these things over him so he could keep Silas as a client. A few days after the announcement, Silas was fined €30,000 and banned for three months by the German FA (DFB).
A few years before that, the case of . The Hamburg player had arrived as a refugee in Germany in 2015 but tabloid Bild claimed in 2019 he was not who he claimed to be. A handful of Hamburg’s 2. Bundesliga opponents that year filed complaints as a result of the claims. But no legitimate evidence was found by authorities to support this, despite Jatta’s home being raided in 2020 and a court dismissing a case against him in 2022.
While not exclusively an issue for players with African roots, it is often players from the continent who are suspected of altering documents to help their careers in Europe. Last year, Cameroon were in the eye of the storm. An under-17 team for a UNIFACC tournament – contested by Central African countries – were disqualified after failing MRI tests. In the end, 21 players from that squad were banned before 62 were banned from league football in the country.
What happens next?
Reasonably enough, likely nothing until the picture is clearer. At the moment, the claims of Joseph Moukoko do not appear to have any solid evidence attached to them, though Pro Sieben may know different. For now, Youssoufa Moukoko is free to play for Nice in Ligue 1. He is also free to play for the German national team, with whom he . But a dip in form for Dortmund after that, means he has not featured since a late cameo in the group stage loss to Japan.
Edited by: James Thorogood
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