When Gourav Mukhi scored for Jamshedpur FC on Oct. 7, he became the youngest player at age 16 to ever net a goal in the Indian Super League, one of the top professional soccer leagues in the country.
Except he isn't 16. And he wasn't then.
Mukhi hasn't been 16 years old, in fact, since 2006.
As reported by FOX Sports Asia, the young star was suspended for six months this week by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) after it was discovered that Mukhi was lying about his age. It turns out, as noted in India's The Telegraph before the season, Mukhi is actually at least 28 years old. Several outlets have suggested via Twitter the so-called teen phenom is 29.
But who can blame AIFF, Mukhi's team and everyone else who watched this guy? He hardly even looks old enough to be 16!
Gourav Mukhi:
— FootballTalentScout (@FTalentScout) December 17, 2018
07/10/18: becomes the youngest ever goal scorer in the history of Indian Super League at the age of 16
17/12/18: suspended for six months for age fraud, he's 28 according to reports
🤔 pic.twitter.com/DRGOoWQJ0R
Gourav Mukhi became the youngest goalscorer in Indian Super League history two months ago aged just 16.
— Football Factly (@FootballFactly) December 17, 2018
He's now been banned for six months after it was revealed he is actually 29. 🤣 pic.twitter.com/Z7DOIc6avg
Meet 16-year-old Gourav Mukhi, the youngest goalscorer in Indian Super League history.
— 32Red (@32Red) December 17, 2018
Except the authorities have discovered he's actually 29, banning him for 6 months.
Which, to be fair, is the amount of time it would take a genuine 16-year-old to grow a moustache like that. pic.twitter.com/TFF2jN4Vm1
That was a joke, in case you missed it. Are you kidding us? Everyone is different, and some teens are privileged with the gift of full facial hair. (Full disclosure: This writer was not.) But there's absolutely no way this guy showed up to practice, let alone scored a record goal as a "16-year-old" and then got recognized for it, without someone noticing.
Were there even any conversations about it? And how did they unfold?
Observant soccer executive 1: Hey, is it just me, or does Gourav kind of look like a ... middle-aged man?
Observant soccer executive 2: (Brings hand to chin) Huh! You're right. Whatever.
The best part about it is that this isn't the first time the fully mustached Mukhi has been caught fabricating his age. Per FOX Sports Asia, the adult male was previously cited for partaking in one of India's U16 National Camps back in 2015. At least then he was still owning the children on opposing teams at the ripe age of (probably) 25 years old.
