This was huge for the ‘teenager’ and things seemed to be going great for him and the team.

However, soon the AIFF got to know that Gourav was not 16, and is actually 28. 

Now, the first big goal is always special, something he was told by his teammate Tim Cahill who said it was ‘the best moment’ of his life. 

In retrospect, that might have been a presumptuous statement to make. 

 

Issuing a statement on the matter, the AIFF said:

The AIFF Disciplinary Committee found the player Gourav Mukhi guilty on the basis of the evidence presented by him, his admissions and the statements of Manager of U-16 AIFF academy in 2015.

Apparently, this isn’t the first time he has been caught. 3 years ago, he was accused of similar charges in an India U-16 national camp.

How did it happen again, and at a bigger level? No idea. 

He has been given a 6-month suspension, for now. 

We keep saying ‘age is just a number’. This one took that to another level.