Gourav Mukhi: Forever 16?

When Jamshedpur’s Gourav Mukhi scored that crucial 80th minute equaliser against Bengaluru FC, the Indian Super League’s official website proclaimed him to be the youngest player to score in ISL. The website mentions Gourav Mukhi as a 16-year-old player plying his trade for Jamshedpur FC as a striker.

Match report

Sporting a handlebar moustache and hair bleached golden blonde, the striker from Jamshedpur doesn’t look 16; the sinewy muscles add to that confusion. A little digging on the internet confirmed it. 

Gourav was among the five players who were found overage in the Jamshedpur U-15 squad which lifted the 2014-15 Sub-Junior National Football Championship title. They were found to be “considerably overage” and the team was stripped of its title and levied a fine. Going by that verdict, the striker was at least 16 then. So how old is Gourav Mukhi now?

No questions will be raised on his performance on Sunday. He made his debut in the ISL as a substitute against Bengaluru and more than made up for his team’s faith in him with a stunning goal and celebrated it with a double backflip that will forever be talked about. But the lesser said about the record, the better it will be. 

The curious case of Gourav's age was a talking amount Indian football followers on Twitter in the aftermath of his feat: