All statistics are correct as of July 29, 2024.
Youssoufa Moukoko
Age: 19 Club: Borussia Dortmund Position: Forward Country: Germany (two caps)
Key statistics
Born in Yaoundé in November 2004, Moukoko spent his first ten years with his grandparents in the Cameroonian capital before joining his father, a German citizen since the 1990s, in Hamburg in the summer of 2014.
The young Youssoufa soon started playing in the youth academy of local club St Pauli and wasted no time in demonstrating his goalscoring prowess. Over the course of two seasons, Moukoko scored 23 goals in just thirteen games for Die Kiezkicker’s youth teams, and Dortmund were quick. appeal.
Since then, Moukoko has been generating astronomical numbers. He played for the first time with the BVB U17 at the age of thirteen, with the U19 at the age of 14 and, after a total of 127 goals and 26 assists in just 84 games in all BVB youth competitions, he was promoted to first team in January 2020. About 11 months before his 16th birthday, he scored thirteen goals in four under-19 games while waiting to be eligible for his full debut.
To see: The one by Youssoufa Moukoko
For Moukoko it was only a matter of time to achieve new records, after the DFL reduced the age at which a player can legally debut in the Bundesliga to 16 without a special exemption. The day after turning 16, the pocket forward became the league’s youngest debutant when he replaced Erling Haaland in Dortmund’s 5-2 win over Hertha Berlin. Less than a month later, he entered the history books as the Bundesliga’s youngest goalscorer against Union Berlin on matchday 13 of the 2019/20 season. At 16 years and 28 days, he was almost a year younger than previous record holder Florian Wirtz when he scored his first goal.
Meanwhile, Moukoko’s defeat to Zenit St. Petersburg made him the youngest player in the UEFA Champions League, at 16 years and 19 days. By comparison, he is even younger than Barcelona prodigy and recent European champion Lamine Yamal, who reached his Champions League. He debuted at 16 years and 68 days.
He then broke another Wirtz record by becoming the youngest player to make 50 appearances in the Bundesliga, a record that still stands today. Moukoko was just 18 years and 139 days old when he did this, and he celebrated that milestone by scoring the winning goal against Union. Berlin on matchday 27 of the 2022/23 campaign.
Moukoko finished his first half of the season with 3 goals in 14 appearances. Despite his injuries, he still managed two goals and two assists in 16 top-flight games the following year.
The 2022/23 campaign has brought better days, with Haaland’s departure and Sebastien Haller’s cancer diagnosis opening the door to normal minutes with Edin Terzic. A call-up for the 2022 World Cup is just a compliment for his six goals and four assists in 14 Bundesliga titles. games, and Moukoko finished in double figures for his contribution to the best flying goals in 2022/23 (seven goals, three assists) after his exploits against Union.
And yes, he achieved other milestones along the way: the youngest Bundesliga player to score in the Klassiker, the Revierderby, scoring a brace and achieving double goals.
See: Youssoufa Moukoko, the youngest goalscorer in Bundesliga history
Moukoko had already represented Germany in the youth phase when Hansi Flick picked up the phone before the Winter World Cup. He was already playing for the U-16 national team at the age of 12, scoring three goals in four games before joining the U-20s after three years. The BVB teenager signed up for the U21 category 12 months later and scored six goals in his five games for Stefan Kuntz’s team.
Moukoko made his senior debut in a World Cup warm-up match against Oman, becoming the four-time world champion’s youngest debutant since Uwe Seeler in 1954, and fourth overall. A week later, he made history by becoming the youngest German player to participate in a World Cup finals, at 18 years and 3 days, beating the record of Karl-Heinz Schnellinger (19 years and two months, 1958 World Cup).
Plays a little like: Sergio Agüero
When we talk about fast, agile and intelligent finishers who have the ability to contribute to the pre-tournament game, a few names come to mind. One of them is none other than Sergio Agüero, a guy who scored before his early retirement in 2021.
Moukoko not only possesses qualities and the possibility of dominating the defenses in the years to come, but he has also started his career immediately, as has the Argentine.
While Moukoko’s debut in Dortmund at just 16 years old is mind-blowing, what’s even more surprising is that Agüero made his debut with Independiente at just 15 years old. Although Agüero made his debut earlier, his first professional goals came at the same age of 16.
Moukoko might have been among the quickest goalscorers than Aguero, but he is the fastest Argentine striker to reach 50 professional appearances, at the age of 17.
See: Moukoko remembers the record strike
The similarities don’t end there, as their scoring rates in their first 30 professional games were also similar. In his first 30 games, Aguero scored thirteen goals while Moukoko scored five, meaning Aguero scored about once every 154 minutes, while Moukoko scored about every 194 minutes.
The similarities are endless, especially when you look at how they like to score their goals. For example, if we take Agüero’s most famous goal that secured Manchester City first name in the Premier League against QPR in 2012 and Moukoko’s historic first goal. in front of Union Berlin. Both goals showed great movement and intelligence to position themselves on the defender’s right side before a forceful and instinctive shot near the goalkeeper’s post.
Made?
Youssoufa is the only footballer in the family. His older brother, Borel, 24, is a left-back and recently played in Cameroon with Apejes FC.
“If the ability runs in the family, he deserves an attractive footballer,” former coach Ralf vom Dorp told RevierSport in Essen.
It’s a challenge that Borel may accept: taking on a young Youssoufa while taking place in Hamburg shouldn’t have been too simple an adventure. ” It’s the wonder that everyone thinks it is,” the older brother explained with a smile.
What they say
“Youssoufa just plays very well. He is quick and a smart finisher. ” – Germany head coach Hansi Flick.
“I think he’s a very smart talent, a promising talent. I think if you know this guy too, he’s a perfect guy, very humble, he’s down to earth, which is the most vital thing for a young player. ” – Jude Bellingham, former Dortmund teammate.
“Youssoufa is doing exceptionally well. He has a lot of confidence in himself and has made considerable progress in his game. We are very happy that Youssoufa is not injured, that he is playing well, that he is scoring goals and that he is receiving assists. We will continue with him on this path. ” – Edin Terzic, Borussia Dortmund coach
“Moukoko is much bigger than me at his age. Never in my life have I seen a 15-year-old player so intelligent. The merit for him is that he was already playing for Dortmund when he was 15 years old. At his age, I’m still betting on my hometown of Bryne. – Erling Haaland, Moukoko’s former teammate at Dortmund
Aleksandar Pavlović and Mathys Tel are joined by Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Youssoufa Moukoko on the shortlist.
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Many young gems will be present when Bayer Leverkusen take on Borussia Dortmund this weekend in a delightful encounter.
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